Dwyane Wade Blames Shaquille O’Neal for Gatecrashing SNL Amid Met Gala Uncertainty

The excitement is palpable with just a day left until the Met Gala. Most attendees have already picked out their outfits and perfected their poses for the night. And it seems the Wades have too. It’s not yet known whether the couple will attend the event, but the NBA champ is already getting creative ahead of the fundraising festival. As we get closer to the biggest and most glamorous night of the year, Dwyane Wade might have a big surprise in store. For now, he has already dropped the first surprise of May that involves Shaquille O’Neal.

We have seen Wade dip his toes into several ventures. He has his own wine brand, Wade Cellars. Wade has one foot in fashion with his partnership with Versace. And he contributes to the entertainment world too as an executive producer. It wouldn’t be surprising if he appeared in a variety show. And oh, he just did!

The 3x NBA champ made a surprising appearance on the long-running American sketch comedy show. The Saturday Night Live host Quinta Brunson, Sabrina Carpenter and Marcello Hernandez were joined by Wade for the musical tribute to short people. Yes, short people!

Wade might look like a misfit, until you hear his story. He jokingly pointed out that he’s 6’4″, which is considered short in the NBA world. He named his former teammate O’Neal, who is 7’1″. And with this song, he feels seen! “I really love being short. I was sitting in the audience watching SNL and I heard your song about being short. I feel seen. Yeah, I’m 6’4 but in the basketball world, that’s like 4’10”, Shaq’s like 7’1. I just really wanna be in the song,” he said. So, now perhaps, he doesn’t seem like a misfit.

Joke aside, Wade’s brief stint really had the fans’ jaws dropped. Many took to social media to share the clips. Much later, the NBA champion also shared several snaps and snippets of behind the scenes from the event. 

Wade also shared a snap of him dressed in a dapper floral blazor and trousers. The snap is captioned, “Would have been a sick Met look.” So, it seems that Wade might be in attendance. Wade’s second surprise remains to be seen. SNL isn’t the Miami Heat legend’s first stint. Wade has made a few appearances in the past. One of the latest was his appearance in the movie The Perfect Find, featuring Union. Wade himself is in the entertainment world and has contributed as an executive producer.

Dwyane Wade made Oscars debut in 2024

The two also made a splash with their stunning presence at the Oscar this year. But 2024 is special, when DWade made his debut at the Oscars as a nominee. Wade was nominated as an executive producer for The Barber of Little Rock in the Best Documentary Short category. The movie didn’t win the Academy Award, but it made an impact on viewers. For the event, Wade was joined by his wife Gabrielle Union. 

While Wade wore a custom Versace white tux jacket and black trousers, Union wore a Carolina Herrera outfit and paired it with a Tiffany & Co. diamond and aquamarine necklace. Wade in one of his interviews with People shared the heartwarming conversation he had when he broke the news to his daughter Zaya. He added that his daughter’s friends had already watched the movie and were impressed. Speaking of the Oscars, the couple called it a date night.

Sharing a picture of him and his wife on Instagram from the Oscars 2024, he wrote, “Took her to the Oscars 😎 Last night was a night of firsts: @59thandprairie’s first Oscar nomination and my debut in the @wayofwade 11s. I hope I’m making younger me proud. Let this be your reminder that anything is achievable when you do the work,” the Miami Heat legend said. This reminds us of what Brunson said on SNL, “When you’re short you can do anything / You can flip like Simone (Biles)” True indeed!