On a night when he went bezerk for 41 points in the Miami Heat's series-clinching win over the Indiana Pacers Thursday night, Dwyane Wade seemed to make even more of a statement off the court.
A fashion statement, that is.
And it looked as though he raided Russell Westbrook's closet.
The Heat guard wore hot pink pants before Game 6, prompting NBA TV's Rick Kamla to label his attire a "flagrant fashion foul." He also sported a matching pink finger sleeve.
Wade, aware of the criticism, opened up the postgame press conference in a joking mood.
"Start off this interview by saying I know they're killing me in the studio over my pants," Wade said. "They're just mad because they can't pull it off."
ESPN's Rachel Nichols reported that teammate LeBron James made fun of Wade before the game by jabbing, "Damn, for real, those are close-out pants? And the finger sleeve?"
"You gotta coordinate," Wade replied.
"You look like Eddie Murphy in the '80s," James said.
"Eddie Murphy wishes he looked like me," Wade said.
When you shoot 17-for-25 and score 41 points while plucking 10 rebounds, well, a lot of people wished they looked like Wade Thursday night.
With Wade wearing pink pants and James reading Hunger Games, maybe Chris Bosh will promote himself as One Direction's biggest fan next.
About Reid and Mike
Reid Cherner has been with USA TODAY since 1982 and written Game On! since March 2008.
He has covered everything from high schools to horse racing to the college and the pros. The only thing he likes more than his own voice is the sound of readers telling him when he's right and wrong.
Michael Hiestand has covered sports media and marketing for USA TODAY, tackling the sports biz ranging from what's behind mega-events such as the Olympics and Super Bowl to the sometimes-hidden numbers behind the sports world's bottom line.
