After his Dwyane Wade statue was flamed by social media users, sculptor Omri Armany broke his silence about the criticism of his latest creation.

On Sunday, the eight-foot bust of the Miami Heat legend was unveiled outside Kaseya Center.

However, many fans torched the sculpture for being off-base – claiming it looked nothing like the three-time champion it was meant to honor.

Speaking to Front Office Sports on Monday, Armany shared his reaction to the criticism and revealed Wade’s meticulous involvement in the statue’s creation.

‘I want to be an artist that creates an in-your-face response and you cannot expect all of human society will have a positive reaction,’ Amrany told the outlet.

‘Some people will come with a goofy response or angry response.

That’s not because of what the art is itself, but rather how it makes them feel.

So, if this is my part of being a psychologist, fine.’

Sculptor Omri Amany spoke up after his Dwyane Wade statue in Miami was heavily criticized

View gallery

Fans torched the sculpture for not lookin like the three-time champion it was meant to honor

Much of the criticism was centered on the depiction of Wade’s face.

The statue drew comparisons to the infamous botched Cristiano Ronaldo statue unveiled in 2017.

Armany’s firm, Studio Rotblatt Armany, was not involved in the Ronaldo statue, which was revised thereafter.

Armany worked with artist Oscar Leon on the sculpture and said many twisted Wade’s remarks during the ceremony upon the statue’s unveiling.

He also revealed that the Hall of Famer visited their studio in his native Chicago several times during the building process.

‘He knew exactly what he wanted,’ Amrany said. ‘He was very happy with the piece.

He was joking when he turned around and said, ‘Who is this guy?’ It was like, ‘How did I get here where somebody made a sculpture for me?’

‘Some people took it like he didn’t recognize his own sculpture, which is completely the opposite.

It was just an expression. Sometimes people take the expression literally instead of trying to understand the depth of it.’

While fans misinterpreted his initial comments, Wade called the statue ‘beautiful’ during Sunday’s ceremony.

View gallery

Wade posses next to his statue after Sunday’s unveiling ceremony outside Kaseya Center

View gallery

Wade called the bust ‘beautiful’ and was meticulously involved in the creative process

‘Personally, I’m biased, I think it’s one of the best statues that’s been created because of what it represents for us and for me,’ Wade told the Miami Herald.

Wade’s sculpture is the first to be erected outside Kaseya Center, the home of the Heat.

Armany also shared the direct line between his most recent product and his most notable statue – the Michael Joran sculpture known as ‘The Sprit’ outside United Center in Chicago.

‘I was looking at this one as continuing a tradition,’ Omri Amrany said.

‘Dwyane was about 11 years old when his father took him to see the sculpture of Michael Jordan in Chicago after we unveiled it.

‘Now, Dwyane is part of the next generation who is getting the tribute,’ He added.

‘I would like to see another 11-year-old kid with his father inspired by this statue and, 20 or 30 years from now, will have his own statue unveiled.’

View gallery

Wade played 13 of his 16 NBA seasons in Miami, making pitstops in Cleveland and Chicago

View gallery

The basketball Hall of Famer won NBA championships with the Heat in 2006, 2012 and 2013

The Wade statue depicts his iconic ‘this is my house’ gesture after a double-overtime victory over the Bulls in the 2008-2009 regular season.

The sculptor shared the challenges presented by Wade’s celebration, compared to other works that portrayed action shots.

‘That’s what makes things a little bit harder because, at the end of the day, you’re still looking at hundreds of hundreds of pounds of bronze that has to be standing safely for many years to come,’ Amrany said.

Aside from his Wade and Jordan statues, Armany was responsible for several sculptures outside Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

His creative hand brushed over the statues of Shaquille O’Neal, Magic Johnson, and the Kings’ 50th Anniversary.

A second Kobe Bryant statue, depicting the late Lakers Legend sitting courtside with his late daughter Gigi, was unveiled in August.

Studio Rotblatt Armany has about 15 artists on their payroll and several projects on deck.