Dwyane Wade's statue gets a facelift: Heat legend's bronze likeness updated with new face

'I hope when people see it now, they see a better likeness of me,' Wade said on Friday

Oct 30, 2026 at 1:48 pm ET • 2 min read

Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade probably has a smile on his face this week following the second reveal of his bronze statue outside of the Kaseya Center. The update comes with a bronze facelift.

Sculptors enhanced Wade's face to be more lifelike after the statue's original form in 2024 was met with online jokes and widespread negativity.

The franchise's all-time leading scorer, Wade won three NBA championships with the Heat, was a 13-time All-Star and  is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame. The former first-round pick's No. 3 jersey is retired by the Heat.

Wade, in a post on Substack, said he "heard the jokes" and "saw the memes" about the statue when it was first unveiled. He defended the initial work, but was OK with the update because the statue "also belongs to Miami."

"So we listened. We went back to work. And we made the adjustments," Wade wrote. "I hope when people see it now, they see a better likeness of me. But more than that, I hope they see themselves. Because it may be my likeness, but it will always be our house."

After its initial unveiling in 2024, Wade wasn't overly bothered by the negative reaction.

"If I wanted it to look like me, I'd just stand outside the arena and y'all can take photos," Wade said. "It don't need to look like me. It's the artistic version of a moment that happened that we're trying to cement."

The statue commemorates the scene following Wade's game-wining shot to beat the Chicago Bulls in double overtime during the 2009 season after he stood on a court-side table and yelled, "This is my house" to a capacity crowd.

The original statue outside the arena made its debut on the 21st anniversary of Wade's first game with the Heat.

"There's only a few organizations that have a statue outside," Wade said, thanking the organization. "There's not even 15 players who played this game of basketball that have a statue outside. We -- we -- have a statue outside. So, for me to be the vessel that's used, to be the chosen one, I'm proud of it. 

"I'm proud because we worked very, very, very hard to create an image that will stand for a very long time that expresses what the Miami Heat my family and our fan base is about. So, don't let nobody talk about our house. Because this is our house. They're on the outside. Leave them out there."