DeVonta Smith says his botched LeBron James-Dwyane Wade tribute is to be blamed on Hawks teammate AJ Brown.
The NFL can’t make a one-to-one comparison with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade on the Miami Heat in the early 2010s. But if there’s a pair of teammates who can live up to the legend of James and Wade’s tandem in South Beach, it might be Philadelphia Eagles star receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. Just don’t base that possibility on their botched re-creation of an iconic photo of the former Miami star in “Heat” glory on Sunday.
Brown and Smith paid tribute to James and Wade after they scored a touchdown in Philadelphia’s Week 9 win over the Dallas Cowboys. However, they didn’t time Wade’s pass to James perfectly, and Smith’s lob to Brown left no chance for James’ thundering dunk against the Milwaukee Bucks in 2010.
AJ Brown scores his sixth touchdown of the season! @eagles Leading 28-17.
📺： #DALvsPHI fox tv
📱: Live broadcast #NFLPlus https://t.co/d4RDZpcMkc pic.twitter.com/guHD2nr2EW– NFL (@NFL) November 5, 2023
Smith explained why their execution failed during an appearance on Wednesday this is footballtold host Kevin Clark The buck stops with Brown.
“Everybody knows that no matter how bad the catch is, a real dunker is going to make it look good,” Smith said. “So if it were me, I’d do it really well.”
The truth is, even a complete football alley-oop doesn’t accurately recreate the picture of James and Wade. It’s a common misconception that Wade threw a lob to James. He actually threw a pass that ignored the bounce, providing ample running lane for the King’s signature dunk.
Football has a funny way of bouncing. Regardless, maybe Smith and Brown could provide a more fitting portrayal later in the season for the Eagles? It certainly wasn’t any worse than their first attempt.