National Basketball Association

D-Wade looking to avenge old loss

Published Sep. 9, 2010 4:51 p.m. ET

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Dwyane Wade has an NBA championship ring, a league scoring championship, a finals MVP award and more All-Star momentos than he can count.

Despite all that, he still isn't fond of Brother Rice High.

And on Friday, some decade-old wounds will be revisited.

The star Miami Heat guard will be one of the honorary coaches when Brother Rice meets Bloom High in a rematch of two storied Chicago schools, 10 years after Bloom won a playoff game 42-40 in a finish that's still hotly debated.

So players from those teams - albeit with nothing at stake but pride - will replay the game Friday, part of a Gatorade promotional series that reunites opponents with particularly appealing rivalry stories. Wade will be working with Bloom, while Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard will be assisting Brother Rice.

''These guys are getting a second chance, and I think that's real cool,'' Wade said Thursday. ''One of the guys who was the star for Bloom's team was my teammate at Marquette, so there's that. And I kind of want to see us beat Brother Rice. Again. You never get over certain things.''

That Bloom standout, Joe Chapman, is the central figure in how this whole thing came together.

In the 2000 playoffs, Brother Rice beat Richards High - Wade's team. Later, Brother Rice met Bloom in what was known as the Super Sectional round, and were considered heavy favorites. Chapman was credited with a tip-in at the final buzzer, and Bloom prevailed 42-40.

Replays were inconclusive. One side says it was good. The other side says it wasn't.

''It's great to be part of this, these guys getting a chance to replay this game,'' Wade said. ''Because as a competitor I know that any loss stands out. And it hurts.''

Oddly, Wade also sees this as part of his preparations for the fast-approaching Heat season.

When training camp opens in Miami later this month, Wade said the Heat will have the approach that just about everyone in their locker room - himself, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and the rest of the cast - will be getting a second chance at something special. Miami was the story of the NBA this summer, not only by keeping Wade but luring James, Bosh, Mike Miller and others to join the Heat.

''The whole experience of being around this, it's something that's made me think and reflect on my life and the opportunities I will have,'' Wade said. ''I look at the opportunity they have, the support they have from the whole city, and think we have the same thing in Miami. This doesn't happen often in sports. We're going to have the opportunity to do something amazing.''

Players in Friday's game have been part of an eight-week training and conditioning program. Some stayed in good shape in the 10 years since high school. Some, not so much, and took the chance to replay this game as a way to get their bodies healthier and stronger again, Wade said.

''This is no pickup game,'' Wade said. ''This is something these people will remember for a long time.''

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