Dwyane Wade and the Chicago Bulls have reportedly engaged in buyout talks recently. What could all this mean for the franchise he cemented his legacy with?
The Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade have a long, storied history together.
Drafted with the fifth overall pick out of Marquette in 2003, Wade spent 13 seasons in South Florida and played a key role in delivering the franchise’s first three championships.
The relationship soured over the course of last summer, after Pat Riley and Micky Arison were reluctant to give Wade the hefty salary he requested, and quite frankly, deserved. After weeks of little communication between the two parties, Wade signed a two-year, $47 million dollar deal with his hometown Chicago Bulls.
Leaving behind a boatload of highlight reels and accolades, there’s no doubt that the no. 3 will someday be in the rafters of American Airlines Arena.
According to ESPN’s Nick Friedell, Wade and the Bulls have engaged in buyout talks, and the sides hope to come to an agreement relatively soon, stating the 35-year-old shooting guard “is not long for the organization’s future and is expected to reach a buyout agreement at some point in the next few months.”
"The Chicago Bulls have been picked dead last in ESPN Forecast’s projected standings for the 2017-18 season. Just 26 projected wins for a team that has gone to the playoffs in eight of the past nine seasons."
In Wade’s defense, he chose to opt in to the second year of his current deal in June, before the Bulls ultimately decided to trade Jimmy Butler to the Minnesota Timberwolves and let veteran point guard Rajon Rondo walk.
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What does this mean for the Heat?
Quite frankly, this situation, in my opinion, has two possible endings: Wade will either return to Miami or choose to ring chase elsewhere, likely a one-year deal with…you said it, the Cleveland Cavaliers and his former running mate, LeBron James.
The latter seems far less likely, but with the power these players hold in today’s NBA, anything is possible. A return to where everything began would only be right.
Wade and the Heat parted ways on a sour note, and after all they’ve been through together, the fences need to be mended. While a possible reunion would not catapult Miami in to championship contention, it never hurts having one of the top three all-time shooting guards on your roster, 35 or 25.
Remember that in his last year with the Heat, at 34 years old, Wade averaged 24 points on 47 percent shooting over the course of seven games in the Conference Semifinals against the Toronto Raptors.
On top of that, he looked spry and healthy all season, appearing in 74 of 82 games while logging nearly 31 minutes per night. It’s hard to predict how well Wade would fit with this unit, and he and Goran Dragic have struggled to co-exist at times. Head coach Erik Spoelstra might be willing to play a three-guard lineup with Dragic, Wade and Dion Waiters, which may be the only way those players could co-exist, even if it’s not the smoothest fit.
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In the end, the Heat have proven they can make the playoffs with Wade, and have yet to do so without him since 2003. Come on home, Dwyane. It’s only right.