Which players will be most affected (for better or worse) by Wade’s return?
Johnson: Bam Adebayo has a great opportunity to play with Wade, which might manifest a positive outcome similar to when Wade and Hassan Whiteside played together in 2015-16 (lobs for days). Regarding the shooting guard position however, Wade’s presence, assuming he plays a regular rotation, will certainly impact Wayne Ellington. Ellington was the de facto shooting guard off of Miami’s bench and Wade’s ball dominance will definitely influence his shot selection.
Ebrahim: To me, it has to be Justise Winslow. We saw it immediately upon Wade’s return in the middle of last season. But there’s a resurgence of energy inside him whenever Dwyane Wade is in his ear and is able to guide him through different portions of the game. And with Winslow playing more of a ball-handler role lately, it’s a perfect mentor to have. Wade has been the predominant ball-handler for the Heat at times, and then had to take a backseat for a while to LeBron James, followed by having to coincide with Goran Dragic; he’s seen everything. So just having another year of Wade in his ear and picking his brain, I think could do wonders for Winslow.
Eyrich: Josh Richardson will benefit the most. He’s at the point where we know he’s valuable and it’s time to take it to the next level. Who else could teach him better how to do that than Wade himself?
Rahming: I think Dion Waiters will be affected most with the key holder to Wade County coming back to town. I’m sure he’s not excited to not be ready for basketball activities to start the year, after missing time towards the end of the 2016 and losing almost all of the 2017 season to injury. Wade will bring a lot of noise to the team, but he will somewhat be of a safety net for Waiters while he rehabs in the shadows. Here in Philadelphia, we watched this happen with Carson Wentz and Nick Foles. The Eagles MVP candidate goes down, and suddenly their Super Bowl hopes are in jeopardy. Philadelphia fans are known for booing Santa Claus. Do you honestly think that if Foles hadn’t come in and shown he could at least steady the team while taking over the starting spot, that he wouldn’t have received boo’s as well? Waiters should be thanking his lucky stars that as long as he’s able to come back by mid-season, he will still have the trust and rapport with the fans.