The Miami Heat’s Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh were the superteam that kicked off the current player-movement era. For four years, they advanced to the NBA Finals each year and won two championships before James decided to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Why did James decide to leave the Heat? Many have attributed his exit to Miami’s five-game loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2014 NBA Finals. However, one of James’ closest friends and his partner in crime on the Heat, Wade, believes that Heat team president Pat Riley played a role in James’ departure.
Dwyane Wade Reveals Pat Riley’s ‘Micro Managing’ Led to LeBron James’ Exit
For Wade, it all stemmed from the activities of the NBA’s godfather, Pat Riley. The team president for the Heat since 1995, he’s been the biggest decision-maker for the franchise through its three NBA championships and seven Finals appearances.
However, one of his eccentricities may have led to James bowing out from Miami after just a brief four-year run. Speaking on “The Underground Lounge,” Wade was candid about the first moment he felt like the Heatles era was in jeopardy.
D Wade says the first moment he thought LeBron might leave MIA is when Pat Riley took his cookies
“One thing you don’t do, is f*ck with LeBrons cookies… 4 finals in a row. You don’t need to micro manage us, I felt Riley went too far with his micro managing”
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“This was the first moment where I had an inkling that LeBron may not be back. One thing you don’t do is f*** with LeBron’s cookies,” Wade said. “No, no, no, this is serious. He loves chocolate chip cookies and ice cream. And when he walks on a plane — Bron walks on a plane with a bag of food. One bag is all cookies and other bags are what his chef has prepared for him to eat because he eats a certain way.
“He don’t eat what’s on the plane, but he’ll have his cookies. So, we get on the plane and we play cards at the front of the plane. At some point, Bron gonna be like, ‘Hey, bring me those cookies.'”
However, after a point, the practice was stopped thanks to the interference of Riley.
“One day he was like, ‘Hey, where my cookies at?’ They had to come up there and whisper in his ear, telling him there were no more cookies on the plane,” Wade said.
From his reaction, Wade immediately knew something was wrong.
“That motherf***er sat back away from the game, he pushed the cards back, he sat back doing his head like this [nodding],” Wade said. “He didn’t play cards no more.”
James’ friend and manager Maverick Carter has said that James spends $1 million every year to stay in peak physical condition. It’s why he’s still playing at a high level today at 40 years old and in his 22nd season in the league. A big part of that comes down to his personal chef, who takes care of his dietary and nutritional needs.
However, even James likes to snack, and the team banning cookies on the plane represented a larger issue.
“It was too much micromanaging at that point,” Wade said. “Like you’re talking about a team who’s [been to] four Finals in a row. You don’t need to micro-manage us, and I felt that Riles went a little bit too far with his micromanaging. We’re grown men. You don’t take cookies away from us.
“This seems small but we get on and they changed all the chips [on the plane]. You got that s*** that gets you through. When I get on this plane, I want this because this is what gets me through. I’m about to fly out of the city, I ain’t getting in till three in the morning. The food on the plane — I don’t really wanna eat. I can’t eat when I get in, and I gotta get up in the morning. … I gotta have my comforts along the way.
“Riles take all of them comforts away when he’s hot. If Riles is hot, ain’t no comfort.”
Despite winning two MVPs and his first two championships in that four-year span, James decided to up and leave the Heat to rejoin the Cavaliers. In the decade since, he’s won two more championships and been to five NBA Finals, while Miami has had two appearances.
