WHEN I WAS ON THE NATIONAL TEAM, I COULD FOCUS ON WHAT I WANTED

With the talent we had, I knew I didn’t have to worry about offense. I knew I didn’t have to stress over scoring. I was able to single-mindedly focus, like I’d always yearned to, on playing defense. It let me focus on putting opponents in straitjackets and erasing them from the game.

Playing with other great players, in that sense, was fun. D Wade and I would always talk about the technique of stealing the ball. He was great at reading passing lanes, and I was great at locking down on the ball, so I would force my man into the corner while D Wade would look to pick off the pass.

I had never played with a player like that before. I played with a lot of length and guys who suited my game, but I never played with a guard that explosive. Man, it was fun to hunt with D Wade.