How will Dwyane Wade impact the Miami Heat this season, if at all?

Closer to the lottery than seventh place the Miami Heat, could be on the outside looking in for the third time in four seasons.

The Philadelphia 76ers 116-115 win over the Chicago Bulls puts the Heat three losses behind the seventh-place 76ers and only one loss away from the lottery.

With a single loss separating Miami from the lottery, Dwyane Wade could provide the leadership necessary in the remaining 24 games to make the playoffs.

Wade doesn’t have the athletic ability from a dozen years ago, yet being on the court with Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Bosh, Ray Allen and LeBron James provides him an insight on what separates the great from the good, as he articulated in an article.

Q: What did you learn about LeBron James from years playing with him?

DW: He’s not great because he’s big or fast. All those things help, but it’s his knowledge of the game and his work ethic. He works like no other. He’s very strict on things in his life when it comes to his diet, when it comes to his time, when it comes to all kinds of things. It’s not by mistake that he’s great. He definitely works at it.

While a good player dabbles in this or that, James knows his priorities and sticks to them.

Wade won’t win games in his dominating fashion of a decade ago, but his will to win has never diminished.

When a loss could lead to the lottery, the risk of accepting even a single one is too great.

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