Retired NBA stars Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo were teammates on the Chicago Bulls near the end of their careers.
However, the guards had an intense rivalry during their tenures with the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics, respectively. Rondo recently shared that he believes Wade attempted to injure him in the 2011 Eastern Conference semifinals.
“That particular play, like I said, it was kind of a freak accident. We were teammates after that, so it’s no bad blood, but I think he broke it on purpose, or tried,” Rondo said on the ‘View From The Rafters’ podcast. “He’s a competitor.”
Rondo continued by clarifying that he understands Wade is a competitor, sharing that the incident was not an act of “targeting.”
“I don’t think it was targeting me in the locker room or talks to take me out or anything like that,” Rondo said. “He was playing, tried to make a play on the ball, and ended up making a play on my elbow.”
The Heat won the series in five games behind stellar performances from LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.
“Adrenaline, just like every other injury,” Rondo stated when asked how he kept playing. “For me, it was a mindset. I went back in the locker room, they’re trying to shoot me up, trying to tell me I shouldn’t play. I’m like, ‘I gotta go. I’ll be back later, we can figure this out a couple weeks from now.'”
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