Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade is sounding off following social media criticism over his statue that looks nothing like him.
The Miami Heat revealed the statue of the Hall of Famer and three-time NBA champion to much fanfare on Sunday. The statue is supposed to depict Wade after he made a game-winning shot at the buzzer in double overtime against the Chicago Bulls in March 2009. He jumped onto the courtside table and yelled at the crowd, “This is my house.”
However, Wade’s statue seemed to be screaming, “This is not me.”
After the statue was unveiled, social media absolutely lit into it.
This Wade statue memes have me dyyyyying 😭 pic.twitter.com/mI30KzxRkf
— BONG Marley 🇯🇲🇻🇪🇬🇧 (@Euro_Jamerican) October 28, 2024
Dwyane Wade’s Heat career
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) October 27, 2024
-15 seasons
-3 championships
-All-time leader in points, games, assists, and steals
-1 completely unrecognizable statue
pic.twitter.com/KgrwAfLWOB
— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) October 27, 2024
They really turned D Wade statue into Morpheus from the Matrix 😭💀 https://t.co/2WempVCNgj pic.twitter.com/cqNDxaWWnN
— Hater Report (@HaterReport_) October 27, 2024
Sculpture artist Omri Amrany defended his work.
“I couldn’t do better than that,” Amrany told WPLG sports director Will Manso. “I don’t think anybody else can do better than that. It is what it is, and we will love it forever.”
Sculpture artist Omri Amrany on any negative reaction to Dwyane Wade statue:
— Will Manso (@WillManso) October 28, 2024
“I couldn’t do better than that. I don’t think anybody else can do better than that. It is what it is, and we will love it forever.”
Encourages people to come see it. Both artists very proud of it. pic.twitter.com/coSZY5yC2u
It took sculptors around 800 hours to build the Wade statue.
Related: These Miami Heat Dwyane Wade statue memes are pure gold
Dwyane Wade defends statue
The big question is: what does Wade think about the statue?
“I care, but I don’t,” Wade told reporters, via ESPN.com. “The social media world is about opinions. Everyone has an opinion. Everyone, use y’all opinions. Please talk more about us. Talk more about a statue, come on down to see it, take some photos, send some memes. We don’t care.”
Crowd was showing @DwyaneWade so much love during his halftime address, he could barely finish his sentences ❤️ pic.twitter.com/IFEP7N3quA
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 29, 2024
During Monday’s halftime ceremony to honor Wade, the former Heat superstar called it “art at its finest.”
“There’s only a few organizations that have a statue outside. There’s not even 15 players who played this game of basketball that have a statue outside. We — we — have a statue outside,” Wade told the crowd. “So, for me to be the vessel that’s used, to be the chosen one, I’m proud of it. I’m proud because we worked very, very, very hard to create an image that will stand for a very long time that expresses what the Miami Heat, my family and our fan base is about.
“So, don’t let nobody talk about our house. Because this is our house. They’re on the outside. Leave them out there.”
Wade is the first player in Heat history to get a statue. Hopefully, the next time the team does one, it actually looks like the player.
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