Dwyane Wade once called his family “broken”. Despite those personal issues, he rose to the highest level possible and earned the Hall of Fame status. During that induction, D-Wade even credited his father for all the hooping lessons and the discipline instilled in him. Just months after the celebration, tragedy hit Wade’s household as the son suffered the cancerous fate. But even though they have that pain in common, their methods of dealing with it are completely different.

“I’m not going to talk to nobody about Dwyane; that’s who I am. If I can’t understand me, how I’mma expect somebody else to understand me? So I try to keep it in-house.” Wade Sr. knows that his son goes to therapy, which he still can’t wrap his mind around. The 65-year-old comes from a different generation, so it’s understandable that there is plenty about Wade’s life that his father can’t quite grasp. But that doesn’t mean he has issues with his son’s methods.

“I’ve always tried to instill: Be better than me. I really think that, in a way, he took his own path,” Wade Sr. spoke to The Atlantic. Details about the cancer treatment weren’t public until Dwyane Wade spoke in January this year. “I think it was the first time that my family, my dad, my kids, they saw me weak,” Wade said on his podcast. “That moment was probably the weakest point I’ve ever felt in my life.” After his father’s own prostate cancer tribulations, Dwyane Wade decided on a full-body scan. Which in turn proved to be a potentially life-saving decision.

Since the tumor couldn’t be biopsied, the 3x NBA champion had no choice but to undergo surgery to find out if it was cancerous. He underwent the surgery, and the doctors removed 40% of one kidney to make sure the cancer did not spread further. The Heat icon shared that he felt vulnerable at the time and did not know how to react in front of his family.

In Dwyane Wade’s weakest moment, his family proved to be a rock

On his Instagram, he shared a snippet from his podcast. “One thing you never want to do as a man is [for] your family to see you weak. It’s tough… In that process of my weakness, I found strength in my family, in my friends, in my group.” Let’s remind you again that it was the Hall of Fame induction year for Dwyane Wade. In January 2024, the Heat franchise had already planned ‘Dwyane Wade Night’ to celebrate his HOF legacy. It was his family who helped him to be courageous and face the battle and let him know being vulnerable was never the problem.

“Scary, scary time for D and our family. I’m glad he was able to tell his story in HIS time in his own way. And NEVER weak. Ever,” Gabrielle Union wrote on an Instagram story. Signifying that her husband, Dwyane Wade, was a fighter through and through. Even Zaire Wade, their son, showed his father love in the comments section of the initial post where D-Wade revealed the cancer surgery.

The 23-year-old added, “love you.” Although the 13x All-Star thought he was vulnerable and did not know how to show his weakness. His family members gave him space so he could fight the battle in his own way.

Despite Dwyane Wade and his dad having totally different ways of dealing with tough stuff, their family bond is super strong. Even though his dad doesn’t quite get therapy, he’s always wanted D-Wade to be even better than him. That Hall of Fame speech where Wade thanked his dad? It showed a lot of love. And when Wade faced his cancer scare, his family was right there, proving they’re a rock for him, no matter what.