Dwyane Wade and LeBron James at a practice session for Game 4 of the NBA finals. (Photo: AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

While most may have considered Dallas Maverick forward Dirk Nowitzki’s performance heroic as he battled through a severe cold to lead his team to victory in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, apparently Miami Heat stars Dwayne Wade and LeBron James weren’t as impressed.

Cameras captured the duo exiting Thursday’s shootaround prior to Game 5 pretending to cough and sneeze, while covering their mouths with the T-shirts in amusement while cameras rolled, according to espn.com.

"Whoa, did y'all hear me cough? I think I'm sick," Wade said before turning toward James and chuckling.

They were apparently mimicking Nowitzki, who had a sinus infection and a 101 temperature, but still managed to scoring 21 points and give his team the lead for good on a dunk in Game 4. How Nowitzki overcame the sickness became the dominant storyline.

You can’t say for certain they were mocking Nowitzki, but Wade had previously shown no real compassion for the storyline of a sick Nowitski coming off his sick bed to lead the Mavericks to a win.

"I have respect for him as a great player. I'm not going to get into the injuries," Wade said Wednesday. "Everyone is injured at this time. I'm not going to get into the fun-loving story of him being sick, either. Once you show up on the court, you show up on the court. Everyone is equal. "He's a great player without all the dramatics of the stories that's been going on."

But can you say karma may have played a big role in what would happen hours later Thursday? Wade missed considerable time in the first half of the Heat’s Game 5 with a hip injury. James faded in the fourth quarter for the fourth time in the series the Mavericks now lead 3-2.

Nowtizki, still bothered by some symptoms of his virus, scored 29 points on Thursday in leading the Mavs to another incredible fourth-quarter comeback.

Something tells me James and Wade should spend less time on their jokes and more time on their games or the Heat will be embarrassed when Dallas celebrates its NBA championship on their floor Sunday night.

Contact Terrance Harris at terrancefharris@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @Terranceharris