National Basketball Association

Six games in, Dwyane Wade finding comfort zone with new-look Heat

Published Nov. 8, 2014 11:36 p.m. ET

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MIAMI -- Dwyane Wade is enjoying having the ball more in his hands again. But it's not so much because he has more opportunities to score, it's because he can also allow the game to come to him at a more natural pace and free up opportunities for his teammates.

In Saturday's 102-92 victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Wade led the Miami Heat not just with his 25 points but also with his eight assists. With his longtime teammate Udonis Haslem back in the fold and more regular season games under their belt, Wade is getting an increasingly better feel for this new-look roster.

"Early on, I was just trying to figure out what's the strengths of my guys," Wade said. "Now I kind of understand the guys I'm playing with and what's their strengths. It's my job as the guy who has the ball a lot to make sure that I put them in the position to succeed. And their job is to make sure that I can have opportunities and have space to be able to create for them and also for myself."

In the Heat's two losses so far this season, Wade has averaged 22 points and five assists. But in their four wins, his scoring has dropped to 16.3 points while his assists increased to 6.7 a game. He may never play the point guard position full-time like he did his rookie season, but the fact of the matter is that the Heat need his all-around game to succeed more than ever.

"It's the same, just the volume of touches," Chris Bosh said of Wade's game. "Nothing has really changed. We all know he can score. We all know he can pass but now he's getting more of an opportunity of course to do that. We're relying on him a lot more not only to facilitate but we're going to him when we need a bucket. We're asking him to make a play and that's either for himself or for the team so we have to keep encouraging him. I'm not surprised one bit."

Neither is Erik Spoelstra, who has worked with Wade since he was drafted out of Marquette and Spoelstra was an assistant coach under Pat Riley. If there's one person who knows just how hard Wade works to improve and refine his game, it's Spoelstra.

"I'm just really encouraged by his work and his commitment to all the things outside of the game," Spoelstra said. "And he puts in so much time. I think everybody on the outside would be shocked at how much time he puts in this building just to give himself a chance to be out there and feel physically right. But he's putting in the time and his conditioning is great. Yesterday he had a great practice and I think you're seeing the residual of the constant and consistent work."

Wade's scoring averages took a hit during the Big 3 era, but so did his assists. Without the freedom to create as much when paired alongside a dominant ball handler, Wade's assist average in the 2010-11 season dropped by almost two full assists from the season before. He never came close to reaching his career average of six assists in any of the four seasons playing with LeBron James.

Many think of Wade as a pure scorer, but his passing skills and willingness to get his teammates involved still remains an underrated part of his game to this day.

"Obviously, when you're not getting a lot of touches you want to score," Wade said. "Yeah, it's a lot easier. I'm getting the ball in my sweet spots a lot more and you don't have to worry about pressing to get a shot. You know you can get a shot when need be, but I understand what's going to win us ball games and what's going to make us successful and it's everybody having confidence and the ball moving around. It starts with me."

You can follow Surya Fernandez on Twitter @SuryaHeatNBA or email him at SuryaFoxSports@gmail.com.

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