Dwyane Wade is a proud father who has a lot to celebrate.
The retired three-time NBA champion was recently inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class along Dirk Nowitzki, Gregg Popovich, Tony Parker, Becky Hammon and Pau Gasol.
During his speech at the enshrinement ceremony, the father of four became emotional when he thanked his own father, also named Dwyane Tyrone Wade, for being a source of inspiration.
“I started this off thanking you, and I want to end it the same way,” Wade, a 13-time NBA All-Star, told his father who sat in the front row at Symphony Hall in Springfield, Massachusetts. “I owe you a debt of gratitude that I’ll never be able to repay.”
Like his father, Wade strives to be a great dad and role model. As the parent of four kids, two of whom he shares with ex-wife Siovaughn Funches, Zaire, 21, and Zaya, 16, one who he shares with Aja Metoyer, son Xavier, 9, and his youngest, daughter Kaavia James, 4, who he shares with wife Gabrielle Union, Wade has worked at balancing fatherhood with his busy schedule.
Dwyane Wade's No. 1 parenting tip
In an interview with CNBC, Wade, who is also the legal guardian of his nephew, Dahveon Morris, 21, says the biggest piece of advice that he's learned raising five kids is to make sure you're present for them when they need you the most.
“I just try to show up. Whatever that looks like for you (because) all of our lives are different,” Wade tells CNBC Make It.
“I have a very hectic and busy life, a very public life and all of these things (I do). But I try to make sure I show up for everybody and my kids. I show up in moments that I know are important to them.”
However, Wade is well aware that there's always room for improvement as a dad. “I think I have my good moments (and) I have my not so good moments, like all parents,” he said.
Though it's important to be present for his kids during critical life moments, Wade says showing up at events like graduations, competitions or even fashion shows aren't always the priority.
“I show up by listening sometimes. Just shutting my mouth, taking a drive,” he said.
“Showing up is half the battle. If I just show up and sit around Zaya for a couple of hours, she gon’ tell me everything I need to know,” he adds, laughing to himself.
“Because you’re there and you’re present, and it’s important.”
What Dwyane Wade has said about parenting in tough times
In a December interview with TODAY.com at the People’s Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California, Wade opened up about how he's evolved as a parent.
“I feel that we all have our own styles and our own way that we parent from our childhood, from what we were told,” he said.
“But I guess my biggest thing would be, what I was told and what I knew growing up, that’s not the world I live in today,” he explained. “So understanding that opened up my eyes, opened up my ears, opened up my heart and opened up my mind to something that’s bigger.”
Wade's comments on parenting came just a month after his ex-wife Funches-Wade had filed an objection in November to prevent their daughter Zaya, who came out publicly as transgender in 2020, from receiving an updated birth certificate.
The former NBA star said that changing his mindset on how he parented allowed him to look at and support his children differently.
“You can listen to them different, you can hear them differently,” he said, adding he’s just trying to be the best dad he can be.
