Just about 20 years ago, Dwyane Wade was selected fifth overall by the Miami Heat in the 2003 NBA Draft. A native of Chicago, Wade hosted his Draft party in the Windy City. At one point, as relays to Rachel Nichols in a recent interview, his cousin, Antoine Wade, approached him and told him Michael Jordan was in attendance. Wade grew up watching Jordan lead the Bulls to five titles and thought his cousin was pulling a fast one on him, even more so when he heard security wasn’t letting Jordan inside. After Wade was finally convinced of the story’s validity, he knew he had to see what was going on.
I don’t know what’s more crazy about this story that Dwyane Wade told on this week’s Headliners – that a bouncer IN CHICAGO wouldn’t let Michael Jordan into a club, or that he showed up at Wade’s draft party completely uninvited and unannounced, just to show some love. pic.twitter.com/x3xdqiDFnp
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 26, 2023
“We beeline out of the club. Right out of the doors, it’s a slew of motorcycles and Michael Jordan is sitting right there on one of the motorcycles,” Wade said. “I run right up to him. It was like seeing a ghost. And I run right up to him, and he said, he was like, I just wanted to come and show you some love.
“That’s a true story. That was my first time meeting Michael Jordan and it was the coolest experience ever. He was sitting on a motorcycle looking cool as shit.”
The entire story is hilarious, especially given Jordan led the Bulls to a title just five years earlier and was only months removed from wrapping up an All-Star season with the Washington Wizards. But he couldn’t gain access to a Chicago club, despite his massive celebrity status globally and in Chicago. Regardless, it ended up being a memorable introduction for Wade to one of the game’s all-time great, just as Wade was kicking off his own legendary NBA career.