Dwyane Wade shares his 'underdog' playoff experience to inspire Vinyl BC ahead of Unrivaled playoffs

Dwyane Wade visited Vinyl BC’s practice session on Saturday ahead of their Unrivaled playoffs clash against the No. 1 seed Lunar Owls, a team which has lost only one game so far. Wade gave a pep talk to the entire Vinyl crew as they acknowledged their underdog status heading to their first-ever semifinals.

Wade, who won three NBA championships with the Miami Heat, shared his experience as an underdog and how a player should have confidence against anyone on the court. Wade also talked to Teresa Weatherspoon and urged her players to stick to the game plan and know their roles on the court.

“We underdogs, obviously right?,” Wade said in a clip posted by Chris Johnson on Instagram. “How do we go out with confidence in our game plan? It doesn’t matter if we’re underdogs. We’re just looking at the one in front of us and the confidence comes from the work.”

“We talk about work, and she said pick and roll. Pick and roll is the most important thing in this league that you’ve got to play in. So we started talking about it and the biggest thing is, which we all know, outside of communication is strictly effort and understanding the game plan and understanding that you got to have extreme effort,” Wade said.

Wade visits Vinyl BC

The Heat legend emphasized the team’s need for extra effort, considering that the tournament is just a 3-on-3 league, unlike the usual 5-on-5 nature of basketball in the WNBA.

“Especially in this league right here, which you cannot rely on two other people that you normally rely on to do the things you need to do,” Wade said.

Vinyl won five of their 14 games in Unrivaled’s regular season, before winning the tiebreaker for the fourth spot against the Mist BC. The team comprises Rhyne Howard, Aliyah Boston, Rae Burrell, Arike Ogunbowale, Jordin Canada, and Dearica Hamby.

Meanwhile, Lunar Owls will be fielding Allisha Gray, Courtney Williams, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Shakira Austin, and Napheesa Collier.

The Unrivaled semifinals will tip off on Sunday, March 16, at 8:30 PM Eastern time, following the playoff game between the Rose BC and the Laces.

Dwyane Wade takes shots at men who do not support women’s basketball

Dwyane Wade has been an avid supporter of women’s basketball, even buying a part-ownership with the WNBA team Chicago Sky. With his passion for women’s basketball, Wade took shots at men who did not support women’s basketball.

"A lot of men are commenting on women's sports. You are just a highlight fan if you don't appreciate the game of basketball,” Wade said. “I hate that. That just shows me how you don't know about the game of basketball.”

The women’s basketball scene saw a massive spike in viewership in the past year as the WNBA tallied record numbers in attendance and viewership. Meanwhile, startup leagues such as Unrivaled have been crucial in keeping women’s basketball going despite the offseason.