Player from Hell

"Wade is a player from hell." — Kobe Bryant

As the son of a former NBA player, Kobe had actually enjoyed a fairly happy childhood. Though frequent moves had left him with few friends, making him lonely as a child with only basketball for company, compared to Wade, Kobe might as well have grown up in heaven.

Born in the slums of Chicago's South Side, Wade had lived alongside death and despair since childhood. His parents' terrible situation had made his early years a miserable, unsettled existence.

When he graduated high school, Wade had even been unable to play basketball for a time due to failing his entrance exams. After finally making it to college, the bad news did not stop. During his sophomore year, Wade suffered a devastating torn meniscus in his left knee. Under normal circumstances, a serious meniscus injury could basically end an athlete's career.

Wade was like a man standing in the fires of hell, bitten and burned. But there was one thing he did not do: sit back and wait to die.

He found Tim Grover, the trainer who had once helped Jordan and Kobe, and devoted himself fully to rehabilitation and training. He described himself as "an enraged warrior," igniting the fire in his heart to burn away his fury, turning the entire chaotic world into a private solitude shared only between himself and basketball.

And it was this warrior, one who had never been willing to admit defeat, who always managed to bring people surprises in the playoffs.

In the second round of the 2006 playoffs, the Heat faced the Nets. After losing the first game to the Nets, the Heat won four straight, defeating Brooklyn 4-1 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. Wade's performance was the key to the Heat reversing