Miami Heat guard named 2006 Sportsman of the Year

	Dwyane Wade took his game to new heights in the NBA Finals, averaging 34.7 points in leading Miami to its first championship. Bob Rosato/SI
	RELATED • REACT: Is Wade the right call? • GALLERY: The best of Dwyane Wade • PRICE: A Sportsman we all can admire • VIDEO: Costas goes one-on-one with Wade • Complete Sportsman of the Year coverage
	SI's Sportsman of the Year Winners Year Winner Year Winner 1954 Roger Bannister 1980 U.S. Hockey 1955 Johnny Podres 1981 Sugar Ray Leonard 1956 Bobby Morrow 1982 Wayne Gretzky 1957 Stan Musial 1983 Mary Decker 1958 Rafer Johnson 1984 Moses/Retton 1959 I. Johansson 1985 K. Abdul-Jabbar 1960 Arnold Palmer 1986 Joe Paterno 1961 Jerry Lucas 1987 Athletes Who Care 1962 Terry Baker 1988 Orel Hershiser 1963 Pete Rozelle 1989 Greg LeMond 1964 Ken Venturi 1990 Joe Montana 1965 Sandy Koufax 1991 Michael Jordan 1966 Jim Ryun 1992 Arthur Ashe 1967 Carl Yastrzemski 1993 Don Shula 1968 Bill Russell 1994 Blair/Koss 1969 Tom Seaver 1995 Cal Ripken Jr. 1970 Bobby Orr 1996 Tiger Woods 1971 Lee Trevino 1997 Dean Smith 1972 B.J. King/Wooden 1998 McGwire/Sosa 1973 Jackie Stewart 1999 U.S. Women's Soccer 1974 Muhammad Ali 2000 Tiger Woods 1975 Pete Rose 2001 Schilling/Johnson 1976 Chris Evert 2002 Lance Armstrong 1977 Steve Cauthen 2003 Duncan/Robinson 1978 Jack Nicklaus 2004 Boston Red Sox 1979 Bradshaw/Stargell 2005 Tom Brady 2006 Dwyane Wade

By SI.com

Dwyane Wade, who rallied the Miami Heat to their first NBA title with a transcendent performance on the league's biggest stage, has been named the 2006 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year.

Wade earned the award for his community work and record-setting romp through the playoffs punctuated by a tour de force in the NBA Finals, where he fueled the Heat's stunning turnaround from an 0-2 deficit against the Dallas Mavericks.

Already an All-Star guard and one of the game's young cornerstones, Wade made the leap to superstardom by averaging 34.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.7 steals in the Finals.

Wade was the Finals MVP, an improbable achievement considering the Heat faced a 2-0 deficit in the series and trailed 89-76 midway through the fourth quarter of Game 3. But Wade scored 12 of his 42 points during a game-ending 22-7 run as Miami stormed back to win 98-96, the first of its four consecutive victories. Wade's 157-point tear in those wins gave him another distinction: No player, in his first three seasons, had scored more postseason points.

In carrying a veteran-laden Heat team with a declining Shaquille O'Neal to the championship, Wade distinguished himself from his celebrated peers.

"He just went off the charts," former Heat coach Stan Van Gundy, now a team consultant, tells senior writer S.L. Price in this week's Sports Illustrated, which hits newsstands Wednesday. "Dwyane literally for six weeks played the game at a level that almost no one's ever played at. I don't know that Jordan ever played a better Finals than he played.

"He's the best in the league right now, and the winning is what sets him apart from the other perimeter guys. LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Carmelo Anthony are great and they may eventually lead teams to championships. But the difference between Dwyane and Kobe is that when the Lakers won [three championships], Kobe had a huge part of it -- but Shaq was the lead guy. Last year, Dwyane was the lead guy. He led them to a championship."

Wade has also been a leader off the court. He has established the Dwyane Wade Foundation, a nonprofit organization promoting social enrichment, education and physical fitness among youth. It assists young people in accomplishing their educational and athletic goals through mentoring.

Wade joins Bill Russell (1968), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1985), Michael Jordan (1991) and Tim Duncan and David Robinson (2003) as NBA players to win Sportsman of the Year since the award's inception in 1954 (Rory Sparrow also was chosen as one of eight Athletes Who Care in 1987). Wade, who turns 25 next month, is the youngest NBA winner.

HBO's Costas Now will feature Wade's selection and profile the year's top performers and newsmakers at 10 p.m. EST/PST Tuesday. Wade will receive the Sportsman award at a party in his honor Dec. 14 in New York.