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14 March 2012: Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) talks to Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade (3) during the Chicago Bulls 106-102 victory over the Miami Heat at the United Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA. (Photo by Mark Halmas/Icon SMI/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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14 March 2012: Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) talks to Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade (3) during the Chicago Bulls 106-102 victory over the Miami Heat at the United Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA. (Photo by Mark Halmas/Icon SMI/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
It is widely accepted that the best of LeBron James came during his time at the Miami Heat. Teaming up with the likes of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the team dominated the entire NBA. However, one of their biggest losses came up against the Dallas Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki.
During the 2011 NBA Finals, the Mavs led by Dirk defeated the Heat to win the NBA title. Interestingly enough, while the Heat dominated the series, LeBron and Wade decided to make fun of Dirk.
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DIRK’s FLU GAME was 11 years ago today.
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) June 7, 2022
Down 2-1, Dirk Nowitzki scored 10 of his 21 PTS in the 4th quarter of the Mavs GM4 win in the 2011 NBA Finals.
LeBron & Wade mocked Dirk's sickness before GM5. The Heat then lost GM5 & 6. https://t.co/bu7j1L0SQJ
Dirk was diagnosed with a flu mid-series which served as a major roadblock for the team. James and Wade decided to have some fun by mocking Dirk on live TV which did not end well for them.
LeBron James and Dwade mock NBA legend which does not end well
The Miami Heat boasted of having one of the most talented rosters of all time. Big things were expected from the trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. As they made their way through the playoffs, the Heat were heavy favorites to win the NBA title.
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February 18, 2014: Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade #3, Miami Heat small forward LeBron James #6 and Miami Heat center Chris Bosh #1 observe the National Anthem before an NBA game between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX Miami defeated Dallas 117-106 (Photo by Albert Pena/Icon SMI/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
They faced the Dallas Mavericks led by NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki. The series looked tight with the Heat leading 2-1 when the Mavs were dealt with a major blow. The team doctors diagnosed Dirk with having the flu. This made headlines everywhere with LeBron and Dwade taking a joke too far.
The two were televised making fun of Dirk before Game 4 by making sneezing actions and laughing. However, Nowitzki let his performance do the talking. Despite not being in the best of shape, he dropped a performance for the ages.
Although his shooting looked off, Dirk performed when it mattered the most. With the score being 82-81 in favor of the Mavs and around 16 seconds left, Nowitzki pulled off a brilliant move to drop Udonis Haslem and bag a layup.
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He ended his ‘flu game’ with 21 points and 11 rebounds which gathered praise from all around the world. The Heat went on to lose the next two games in the series and the Mavs were crowned champions.
Written by
Edited by
Veer Badani