Dwyane Wade calls in trainer Tim Grover during NBA Finals
by Ethan J. SkolnickDuring a postseason with some potholes, Dwyane Wade has looked outward as well as inward — even taking a one-hour trip from Indianapolis to Bloomington during the second round to visit with his college coach, Tom Crean.
Sources told the Post that, last week, Wade also reached out for a trusted friend and adviser to come to him.
Tim Grover, the founder and owner of Attack Athletics, is best known for all his years training Michael Jordan, and has been working lately with Kobe Bryant in Germany. After returning to the United States, Grover went with Bryant to Los Angeles, when Wade requested he come to Miami. With Bryant’s permission, Grover flew to South Florida, arriving on Saturday, watching Game 3 of the NBA Finals from AmericanAirlines Arena on Sunday night, scheduled to stay a few days to work on Wade’s body and mind.
It is no secret that Wade’s lower legs – especially his left knee – have been bothering him throughout the playoffs. It is also not a secret that some in the organization were less than thrilled with the basketball condition in which Wade arrived to training camp this season, though Wade recently said he believed his offseason program had served him well during the lockout-compressed schedule.
He spent less time than usual with Grover at Hoops Gym in Chicago this summer and during the lockout, in part so he could work more closely with LeBron James. Grover was largely credited with getting Wade back into premium shape in 2008, after Wade had suffered a number of injuries. Wade showed the worth of that work by starring for the U.S. Olympic “Redeem Team”, as arguably its most dynamic player.
Wade has played the same number of playoff games so far, in 2012, that he did in 2011. Perceptions aside, his overall numbers actually aren’t all that different, in several categories, and some of the difference is a result of the larger role that James has taken. Wade has played three more total minutes than in the 2011 postsaeson, has made just one fewer field goal and committed just one more turnover. He is averaging fewer points (22.9 compared to 24.5), fewer rebounds (5.1 compared to 7.1), and shooting slightly lower percentages from the floor (46.1 vs. 48.5), the three-point line (25.8 vs. 26.9) and the free throw line (73.0 vs. 77.7).
(Here’s video of Wade discussing his relationship with Grover in 2010.)
Tags: Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat, Tim Grover
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June 18th, 2012 at 7:01 pm
Dwade is needing some hands on therapy – trigger point therapy to be exact. I have read so many articles where he goes to this gym and that trainer and on and on, doing yoga etc. I have had amazing success in getting pros off the bench and playing when the trainers didn’t know what to with them. All massage is not the same what I do is very specialized and takes the pro athlete to a higher level. He is physically drained – you can see that and having a training session isn’t going to make that go away.
June 18th, 2012 at 8:31 pm
46.1% down from 48.5% and 2 fewer rebounds is pretty significant, especially when he’d normally have increased his production against Indy/Boston to make up for Chris Bosh’s absence and the Heat faced off against lesser competition this year.
He’s still getting it done and hanging in there as one of the best guys on the floor, but he’s definitely not himself out there. It’s a credit to his skill level that he’s this effective with less of his usual athletic dominance to draw from, and probably a credit to the folks he’s working with (Grover, etc) that he’s not getting compounded compensation injuries after the first issue with his knee.
June 18th, 2012 at 9:57 pm
Lets face it Wade has been killing us. If the Heat wasn’t able to pull last night games out, some of Wades TOs would not have gone unnoticed? They need to remove him from bringing the ball up. In fact he should only get the ball when he is cutting to the basket. Does the trainer help him with his handle?
June 18th, 2012 at 10:23 pm
i hate all you bandwagon heat fans claiming to get rid of wade. It wasn’t lebron who was with us for 9 years, it wasn’t lebron who was drafted to Miami and stayed, It wasn’t lebron who led us to our first championship and end up having the greatest final performance ever. you know who it was it was Wade so get off his Johnson and let him lead the 4 th quarter
June 19th, 2012 at 8:36 am
john doe: So because of his past accomplishments he is entitled to bring the team down whenever he wants?
June 19th, 2012 at 9:21 am
Sefolosha has always been one of the best one-on-one defenders vs. Wade. You can’t let him dribble up the ball on him in a crucial situation without any help. But there is nothing new with that, it has been the same for ever.
June 19th, 2012 at 3:39 pm
Just because Wade is hurt does not mean he should turn over the ball and then jack up a 3 pointer with the game on the line. This is more mental then physical. I agree, he should not be the one bringing the ball up court and he should not take long 3′s under any circumstances.