Dwyane Wade put his ego aside and is thriving off the bench for the Cavs

Jeff Zillgitt | USA TODAY

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Guard Dwyane Wade knew precisely when he should come off the bench rather than start for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“I knew Game 1," Wade told USA TODAY Sports. "I knew for me to be successful and for me to come to this team and bring what I can to this team, the starting unit just wasn’t a unit for me. So, I decided to go to the unit that was for me.”

After the third game of the season, Wade went to Cavs coach Tyronn Lue and asked to come off the bench.

The move worked for Wade and the Cavs. After a 5-7 start, Cleveland has won 14 of its last 15 games, which included 13 in a row at one point. The Cavs shifted from the bottom half of the Eastern Conference standings into second place behind the Boston Celtics, and as a reserve, Wade has been a pivotal part of their success.

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Off the bench, Wade averages 12.3 points, four assists, 3.8 rebounds and shoots 48.5% from the field – much better than his stats as a starter (5.7, 3.3, two, 28%) – and Cleveland’s advanced stats with Wade off the bench are impressive, too.

With Wade on the court as a reserve, Cleveland scores 114.1 points and allows 103.3 points per 100 possessions for a net efficiency rating of plus-10.8. In the three games Wade started, Cleveland had a net efficiency rating of minus-8.5 with Wade on the court.

“First, we have a future Hall of Famer say he wants to come off the bench. That was the first step,” Cavs coach Ty Lue told reporters. “And then seeing who fits well together, who plays well together and getting that second unit intact has just been great all season. That’s kind of his unit. He runs and controls that unit, so he’s more comfortable having the ball in his hands.”

Often the primary ball-handler with the second unit (Jeff Green plays de facto point guard, too), Wade leads one of the best benches offensively and defensively in the NBA alongside Green, Kyle Korver and Channing Frye.

Add LeBron James to that foursome, and the Cavs have been impressive, scoring 116.1 points and allowing 90.2 points per 100 possessions. A straight bench lineup of Wade, Frye, Green, Korver and Cedi Osman has produced, too.

“He’s run a franchise before. He’s run units before,” James told reporters. “There’s not one situation that he hasn’t been in, so it’s a luxury for our team to be able to have him to come off our bench and be able to lead that group. The way he’s playing right now, he’s just in a great groove. And you guys know me, I’m extremely happy to have him."

The versatility has allowed Lue to create some unique five-man combinations that include a mix of starters and reserves. Wade, James, Korver, Kevin Love and J.R. Smith not only score, they have also defended well.

When Wade started those first three games, he discovered he wasn’t a main option and wasn’t that involved in the offense with James and Love the 1-2 threat.

“I know I’m not a guy who can sit in a corner all game and if the ball comes to me, I’ll be able to knock a three down,” he said. “I’ve got to be in rhythm to knock a three down, so I know that’s not sitting in the corner. There was no flow for me, and I’m the most rhythm-est player in the world.”

Wade is self-aware and had no trouble putting ego aside so he could play an important role even though he had started 1,076 of 1,087 games, playoffs included, in his career.

“Look in the mirror man, and that’s what I did,” he said. "Even my ego saying, ‘I’ve been a starter, and I’ve had this kind of career,’ I still wasn’t going to make the best of it just by being in the starting lineup because of my ego.

"So for me, I was, ‘OK, where can you be your better self and how can you enjoy playing the game and be happy playing the game?’ To me, it was just about making the best of my situation and understanding where I was going to be best at.”

Earlier this season, Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said playing back-up point guard for the Cavs is one of the most important positions in the league. Wade remembered wise words from Spoelstra when deciding the bench role was the optimum situation for him.

“Coach Spo always said, ‘Can you re-invent yourself?' " Wade said. "For me, I tried to re-invent myself. My game hasn’t changed, but I’ve always tried to fit my game within the team and do whatever’s necessary.”

Wade is a 12-time All-Star, an eight-time All-NBA performer and 2006 Finals MVP, and now for the first time in his career, he is a Sixth Man of the Year candidate.

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