Bobby Portis revealed there are still some Dwyane Wade No. 3 Bulls jerseys hanging in Wade's old locker at the Advocate Center. So the forward can rectify the oversight of Wade never supplying Portis' Mom _an unabashed fan dating to Wade's Heat days _ with a jersey.
"I'm going to steal one from him," Portis said, smiling.
Otherwise, Wade took care of all business before signing with the Cavaliers, giving back $8.5 million of his $23.8 million to the Bulls in a buyout. Portis echoed what Denzel Valentine said last week _ that Wade texted him a message of support on his way out of town.
"We talked. Everything is cool," Portis said. "It wasn't like we didn't like him or anything. It was just we had our troubles during the season."
The sentiment goes a long way in challenging the perception that young players disliked Wade after a well publicized incident that drew national headlines in January.
Wade blasted his young teammates' work ethic and commitment following a late collapse at home to the Hawks. Jimmy Butler piled on with more general criticism. Rajon Rondo posted an incendiary Instagram message the next day praising the leadership of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce from their shared days with the Celtics, indirectly criticizing Wade and Butler and supporting the young players.
A team meeting in which many grievances were aired followed. Management fined Wade, Butler and Rondo. And coach Fred Hoiberg benched Wade and Butler for part of the first quarter the next game.
With the Bulls facing Wade, Derrick Rose and LeBron James in Cleveland on Tuesday, it's fair to wonder how Wade would've been received had he agreed to a mentorship role and not a buyout with the Bulls.
"He was a great leader for us," Portis said. "He came in every day to work. When I came in at nighttime, I'd see him here, him and Jimmy. He showed us hard work and things like that. Especially in the playoffs, he even revved it up more. And when our team gets back to playoff mode, that's something I will take from him. And it will help some of the other guys."
Added Nikola Mirotic: "We never had any conflict with Dwyane. Just after that game, they had some tough declarations, Jimmy and DWade. But that was all. It's a part of the game. They were hot. There was disappointment about the game. We all understand. But inside the locker room and with the practices, they've been terrific with us. So there's nothing to complain."
Revisionist history or reality? The truth is probably somewhere in between. In that January team meeting, some young players openly questioned Wade's practice habits. But those same players also respected how Wade put the work in to surprisingly return from a fractured right elbow in time for the playoffs.
Wade and Butler certainly existed on an island at times. But both mostly wanted to challenge the young players, and Wade reached out to all before leaving.
"These young players they're giving these opportunities ... they need to have that time to make mistakes and learn as they're growing and building what they envision," Wade told the Tribune last month.
Hoiberg had termed the incident an ultimate positive by season's end _ and did so again Monday.
"It forced everyone to get in a room and be honest with each other," Hoiberg said. "Really, it got us in my opinion playing better. I thought our chemistry improved after that day.
"I talked to a couple of coaches about it that said, 'At least your guys are in there talking about it. Our guys won't say anything to each other.' Maybe it needed to happen. I thought we finished the season playing our best basketball."
