Dwyane Wade is stepping into a new role this week as the guest co-host for Today with Jenna & Friends, alongside Jenna Bush Hager.
The legendary former basketball player made his debut on Monday and received an adorable surprise when his 6-year-old daughter, Kaavia James Wade. appeared via video message to wish him good luck.
“Hi, daddy! I love you so much that you’re my favorite friend ever — I ever met,” she said with a head nod.
She then added, “And I also want to thank you [and] good luck. I love seeing you on TV and I love you so much,” before blowing her dad a double-handed kiss.
Wade was visibly moved, his eyes lighting up with pure joy. Host Jenna Bush Hager couldn’t help but gush over the message, exclaiming, “Oh my gosh, that’s so sweet!”
But the moment took an even sweeter turn when Wade responded, “That’s my twin right there,” referring to Kaavia’s resemblance to him.
“We ride,” he continued. ” … She loves me.”
“Yeah, we friends,” Wade said with a smile. “And then I’ll be [strict] daddy sometimes. She gets to see that side, her eyes get big when she sees [that].”
Wade says he especially gets strict when coaching Kaavia. “My voice is deeper, my eyes squint a little bit,” Wade joked when describing his approach to coaching.
He also shared that Kaavia is getting into basketball and sees different sides of him: “I’m her coach, trainer… We started basketball a little bit, so she gets to see different sides of me.”
“But I’m glad that she thinks we’re friends,” he added.
Dwyane Wade’s stint as co-host is set to continue throughout the week, and if fan reactions are any indication, viewers wouldn’t mind seeing more of him in the morning show seat.
