For the past decade, maybe barring the four years with LeBron James, Dwayne Wade has been the backbone of the Miami Heat franchise, but fans might want to hesitate before expecting the same level of production from Wade this season.
Over his 12 year career, Wade has become the franchise leader in games played, steals, field goals, free throws and assists, but after several knee surgeries and years of wear and tear, Wade has struggled with consistency.
Wade’s reoccurring knee issues has forced the 11-time All Star to miss large chunks of games. Wade hasn’t played more than 69 games in a single season since 2011. It’s probably safe to assume that he will miss a portion of next season as well. Wade’s ability to stay on the court is obviously a cause for concern, especially without LeBron in Miami to pick up the slack.
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When Wade is healthy, his numbers have been impressive, but they have also declined over the past few seasons. From 2008 to 2014, Wade’s per game numbers have decreased from 30.2 points to 19 points a night. This past season, he had a slight bump, averaging 21.5 points per contest, but this was most likely due to his increased role on the offense, and the lack of other scorers surrounding him.
According to Basketball-Reference, Wade’s player efficiency rating has dropped each year over the past four seasons. In his defense, recording a 21.4 PER at the age of 33 is extremely impressive. At 33 years old, Kobe had a very similar 21.9 PER.
Wade’s biggest problem is his dependency on his athleticism. Without a great jump shot, he has made his career by attacking the rim. However, after a certain age, it can be difficult to consistently be explosive.
If Wade wants to continue to make an impact for the Heat at a high level, he must learn to improve his outside game. Michael Jordan faced a similar crossroads during his last stint with the Chicago Bulls. With his body slowing down, Jordan greatly improved his long-range shooting, and at 32 years old, he made 111 three pointers at a clip of 42.7 percent.
It’s also hard to predict Wade’s impact with the Heat when it’s still unclear who will be part of his supporting cast. It’s also unknown if Goran Dragic will return after entering this offseason as an unrestricted free agent, and we have no idea how Bosh will perform after missing the second half of the season due to a pulmonary embolism.
If both players return, Wade could see a decrease in his scoring numbers, but since he won’t be relied upon as heavily to conduct the offense, he could see an increase in his efficiency numbers.
With Wade, every year is a quest, filled with gold and hidden land mines. He could play a 10 game stretch and look like he’s 25 years old, and then he could re-injure his knee and miss 20 games. Like my grandfather always said, you hope for the best, but you prepare for the worst.
Fortunately for the Heat, since they are in the Eastern Conference, they could foreseeably lose Wade for 20 games, and still have a legitimate chance to make the playoffs. This is especially true if Dragic, Whiteside and Bosh are all healthy and clicking.
The key to consistent success for Wade lies in his ability to stay healthy. One slip, or bad landing could end the Heat’s chances at another title.