Dwyane Wade Acknowledges Birth of Son Outside of Gabrielle Union Engagement

Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade confirmed on Monday, Dec. 30 that he recently fathered a son outside of his current relationship with fiancee actress Gabrielle Union, according to The South Florida Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman.

Wade explained what led to the birth of his son a month ago and why the once private information is now public, per Winderman:

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I had a time, a part in our break, in our pain and our hurt, a blessing came out of it in my life, having a son that was born healthy. So I'm moving on. I'm in the public eye, so obviously that's a part of it. It comes with the territory.

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Wade already has two sons from a previous marriage and is also raising a nephew, according to Winderman.

The nine-time NBA All-Star made the official announcement prior to Miami's road game against the Denver Nuggets on Monday, hoping to provide some clarity on the issue after several reports had begun surfacing online. 

Wade has been dating Union since 2009 and admits that she's known about his son all along, per Winderman: "Like I've said, this is something that my family knows and my now fiancee worked through when we got back together, and understood that we wanted to continue our lives together and continue supporting our family and we're going to do that. That's what I've always done."

The celebrity couple announced their engagement on Dec. 21. The 31-year-old guard posted the 41-year-old Union's response on Twitter and took to Instagram as well: 

The two are scheduled to be married in September 2014.

Injuries have limited Wade throughout the 2013-14 season as he's played in just 22 of Miami's 30 games. He's averaging just 19.9 points in 33.8 minutes per night, but shooting a career-best 54 percent from the field and 36 percent from beyond the arc.

It's unclear how this announcement will impact Wade's play on the court moving forward. But given his experience and dedication to his family, it's difficult to imagine anything slowing him down as he and the Heat take aim at a third consecutive NBA championship. 

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