Dwyane Wade’s résumé could have stopped at three-time NBA champion, 13-time NBA All-Star and Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer. But his basketball success has given him access to a wide range of people and opportunities, in ventures involving sports, education, entertainment, food and wine. His post-basketball duties expanded with last month’s announcement that he would join Prime Video’s NBA coverage for the 2025-26 season as an in-game and studio analyst.
Wade is considered one of the best players in NBA history because of his versatility on the court. In his post-NBA career, doing a little bit of everything still defines him.
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Wade is the father of four children (and the guardian of a fifth), and he advocates for LGBTQ+ youth in solidarity with his daughter Zaya, who is transgender. He is married to actress Gabrielle Union. He’s a brand ambassador, a fashionista, a podcaster.
He’s a cancer survivor, as well.
With everything, Wade has a personal mission: Help people enter spaces they might not normally have access to.
“Not everyone is going to be invited into that room, so you can hold the door open to see if others can come in,” Wade told The Athletic. “If not, make sure that you’re doing your job, giving back to the people that you hope will walk through those doors.”
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It’s been a challenging 18 months for Wade. On the Jan. 30 episode of his podcast, “The Why with Dwyane Wade,” he revealed he had a cancerous tumor removed from his right kidney on Dec. 18, 2023.
Wade admitted he hadn’t been as diligent about getting physicals since his playing days ended, but he eventually saw a doctor after having urinary and stomach issues. What specialists eventually discovered was a three-centimeter mass on his kidney: Stage 1 cancer.
“That moment was probably the weakest point I’ve ever felt in my life,” Wade said on the podcast. “The moments I was by myself, I was struggling.”
Wade, 43, tries to use his private experiences to lead public conversations that could help others, and he wanted to bring awareness to men’s health issues.
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Additionally, his experiences with fatherhood have been an ongoing teachable moment. Wade published a book in 2012 sharing stories about his journey as a parent. More than a decade later, Wade works to be a protector for Zaya.
Wade didn’t plan on parenting publicly, but celebrity status and social media have made it difficult — though he has been careful with Zaya. In being her biggest supporter, Wade has tried to be an example for other parents in how to handle attacks on transgender rights and vitriol aimed at their families. Wade’s basketball career is revered in Miami (the nickname “Wade County” is a play on Dade County), but his family moved to California after his playing career in part because he didn’t believe his family would be “accepted” amid Florida’s anti-LGBTQ+ policies.
Wade doesn’t allow hate to change his parenting approach.
“I’m such a proud father, and I try to post my kids,” Wade said. “So, as my child got older and got confident and comfortable with us talking more about her and talking more about her situation, that’s when we did.”
Through his Dwyane Wade Family Foundation, Wade aims to provide resources to marginalized communities. The foundation also assisted in starting Translatable, a digital platform and online community — operated by both Wade and Zaya — that states it’s “a safe space for LGBTQIA+ youth to express themselves and is a resource hub for our parents, families and support systems.”
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“We want to put our narrative out there, as well,” Wade said. “We know that other families, other kids, other people will be dealing with this and will go through these things. This is happening in real time.”
Since his cancer diagnosis, Wade has continued to live a busy life. His post-NBA biography includes ownership stakes in five sports franchises: the NBA’s Utah Jazz, the NHL’s Utah Hockey Club, the WNBA’s Chicago Sky, the MLS’ Real Salt Lake and the NWSL’s Utah Royals. Other business partnerships include Versace; his wine brand, Wade Cellars; and PROUDLY, which makes hair and skin products for babies and children of color.
Wade is also the founder of the production company 59th & Prairie Entertainment, and he has served as an executive producer on multiple projects, including award-winning Netflix documentaries ““The Redeem Team” and “The Dads.” Add his new Prime Video duties to his growing list of projects.
“If you see a lot of the investments and things that I’ve done, it’s in the world of entertainment, sports, the different teams I’ve invested in,” he said. “That’s how I can utilize myself, because that’s where my strengths are.
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“I wanted to jump right into my strengths when I retired — and then obviously learn other things along the way.”
Wade’s interest in entrepreneurship increased after a shoulder injury briefly sidelined him during the 2006-07 season. His business manager, Lisa Joseph-Metelus, said she considers him a “unicorn.” Wade has his hands on a lot of projects but tries to be intentional about what he attaches his name to, meticulously analyzing potential ventures.
“His curiosity is what drives a lot of the work that we do,” Joseph-Metelus said. “He has no ego when it comes to understanding the process of something or learning or being put in a position where he says, ‘I want to learn.’”
Wade also takes…
