Dwyane Wade showed who finishes for the Miami Heat matters more than who starts

Dwyane Wade may have made closing games more desirable than who scores the first basket for the Miami Heat.

For the record, Kelly Olynyk put the first points on the board for the Heat with a 3-point basket, but who remembers that bucket even if every point out of the 126 counted exactly the same?

What sticks in people’s minds is this 3-pointer.

Add it to the @DwyaneWade career highlight reel! Another amazing moment we will never forget.

To the point, should Dion Waiters, Hassan Whiteside or Josh Richardson get their straps in a knot if they don’t start?

Actually the pressure mentally is much more intense in last two minutes of a close game than the first two minutes.

Traditionally starting carries a certain prestige, but this isn’t baseball where once a player is taken out of a game they can’t return.

In that case starting means potentially more at-bats and time on the field in most cases.

After Wade’s heroics perhaps the Heat players might be more flexible on what role they have on the team in the last few games.

During the second-half of 2016-17 season Rodney McGruder and Luke Babbitt accepted their roles as placeholders, with the results speaking for themselves.

Seems strange to picture Richardson or Whiteside not being on the court for the opening tip-off, yet I haven’t seen any tip-offs as one of the top-10 plays of the day.

Probably because there’s not too much money riding on who wins it.

What Wade tutored the team on versus the Golden State Warriors was how pressure brings out the best in winners.

In that light starting doesn’t mean much at all.