Heat's Dwyane Wade booed by Toronto crowd during Game 5

TORONTO — Dwyane Wade is public enemy No. 1 in Toronto these days.

Ahead of Game 5 between the Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat, fans in the Air Canada Centre loudly booed the guard as his name was announced during player introductions. When the game got underway, the jeers continued to ring throughout the arena whenever Wade touched the ball and continued, through sparingly, as the game wore on and the Raptors eventually won 99-91 to take a 3-2 lead in the second-round series.

While Wade has been the most effective player for either team during this playoff series, averaging 27.3 points per game, the reason for the boos have more to do with his pregame shots.

During Game 3, Wade continued to shoot baskets rather than line up with his fellow teammates while O Canada played ahead of Saturday’s contest, which Toronto won 95-91.

Fans north of the border weren’t happy with Wade’s actions, showing their displeasure via social media. Even Toronto mayor John Tory chimed in, tweeting at the 34-year-old guard to “respect the anthem.”

Following the controversy, Wade said he meant no disrespect by warming up during the anthem. It was simply a case of his normal pregame routine running long.

"It's something that I do before every game that I prepare for, and I've been doing it my whole career," Wade told the media after the Heat's practice session Sunday. "So I understand whatever is said from that standpoint, but I'm not a disrespectful person. So if anybody thinks I'm being disrespectful towards a country, then they have no idea of who Dwyane Wade is."

During Game 4, Wade made sure to line up for the Canadian anthem early and following the Heat’s 94-87 victory on Monday, Wade apologized to Canadians.

“No disrespect at all from me," Wade told the media. "I apologize for Canada thinking I would disrespect them as a county. So today, I just adjusted how I normally get ready for a game."

But it seems the apology may have fallen on deaf ears as fans made sure to let Wade know they didn’t appreciate his behaviour two games prior. Despite the hostile reception, Wade led Miami in scoring, finishing with 20 points and four assists. Game 6 goes Friday in Miami.