Since the legendary 1996 NBA Draft, no other class has come as close to matching that kind of star power. Except for the 2003 draft class. That class brought some of the greatest names the basketball world’s ever seen. While plenty from that class made it to Hall of Fame conversations. A few names still sit at the very top. And leading the charge was the iconic trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Carmelo Anthony. Then, two years later, Chris Paul joined the crew, and the circle felt complete. And before you knew it, they were the “Banana Boat” crew. And now, Wade just reflected on a little incident that’s got something interesting to do with that famous crew.

The whole Banana Boat Crew concept kicked off after LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony went vacationing together back in 2015. These four had been close since their teenage years and built an unbreakable friendship over time. They even teamed up to win Olympic gold in 2008, which only made their connection stronger. So yeah, the bond was legit. But, apparently, no one was supposed to know about their vacation, and honestly, if the picture never made the rounds, we wouldn’t have had a new running joke about Miller. “My wife wanted to go on a banana boat,” Wade explained later. “So, Chris Paul, Bron and I all got on a banana boat. Now, we were in the middle of nowhere, no one was supposed to know this but us”.

Anyway, here’s where it gets a little awkward. There was another guy in their circle. Mike Miller, a former teammate of both Wade and LeBron. Wade once called their relationship a “big brother and little brother” kind of thing. And yet, somehow, nobody remembered to ask Mike to join those famous vacations. But there is a reason behind it.

On a recent episode of the Pardon My Take podcast, Wade finally addressed the obvious question: why wasn’t Mike Miller ever on those famous vacations? Wade didn’t hold back. “Man, Mike ain’t spending none of that money. Mike ain’t spent none of that money since he got to the NBA,”  he said. Turns out, those trips weren’t exactly budget-friendly. And according to Wade, they knew Mike wasn’t about to drop big money on extravagant getaways. So naturally, they didn’t even bother asking.

And when has Wade ever shied away from throwing his crewmates under the bus (all in good energy, of course)? Recently, when he was asked who he would kick off the boat if Melo wished to be in the picture as well, he beat around the bush before finally saying, “Sorry CP“. Talking about Melo, why wasn’t he in the picture, though?

Wade has one story, Melo has another 

That picture, yes, that iconic picture, that gave birth to the Banana Boat Crew, was never meant to exist in the first place. Seriously. Yet, the surprising part remains that Carmelo Anthony, who’s always counted as part of the Banana Boat Crew, wasn’t in the picture. According to Wade, it was because he arrived late, and had Melo been there on time, he would’ve been riding that inflatable right alongside them. But, if you ask Melo? Well, no chance. 

“I didn’t get left out. They were already down there and I was meeting them,” Anthony explained. “I had just flown in and we were, like, taxiing to the boat. They were already in the water doing water sports. I see them on the banana boat and I’m just like, ‘What is this?’ And they’re like, ‘Come on!’ And I’m like, ‘No, I’m not getting on that s—‘”

Yet, had LeBron had asked him later, he might have just agreed. After all, the man saved his life. And it was no easy task, as he himself said, “He had me in one hand and was swimming with the other”. It all happened as the four took a break to enjoy some snorkeling. After exploring a nearby grotto, the group began to swim back to their boat. However, Anthony lingered behind, captivated by the marine life, particularly a group of barracudas.

The next thing he knew was that the ocean’s current began to pull him away. Realizing he was drifting further out and struggling against the tide, Anthony found himself in a precarious situation. “I look up, the current is taking me in the middle of the ocean, like opposite from the boat,” he said. But then he looked up to see Bron jump off the boat like he’s MacGyver. 

Reflecting on the same, James said, “I just knew that he was not back in the boat with the rest of us, so I went out looking for him. And through the grace of God and through strength and not being afraid of the water, I was able to help him back to the boat.“

Well, it must have been a true slow-motion moment for Anthony.