Cold but Rational, Miami Heat Made Painfully Right Call on Dwyane Wade
The Miami Heat lost franchise icon Dwyane Wade at the intersection of business and emotion, on the verge of an organizational overhaul.
It's a jarring twist to this tale, given their storied past together. While the Heat may emerge with a clearer long-term direction, the immediate reality stings like hell.
Despite some uncomfortably public frustrations between them, a familial bond seemed strong enough to endure. Considering Wade called himself a "Heat Lifer" (NSFW language in comments) and Heat president Pat Riley echoed the sentiment, it's difficult to imagine—let alone process—what transpired.
Wade is off to join his hometown Chicago Bulls on a two-year, $47.5 million pact, as first reported by The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski. It's an improbable outcome in an NBA offseason that's churning them out like an assembly line.
Wade even sealed his exit with the requisite explanation letter.
"This was not an easy decision, but I feel I have made the right choice for myself and my family," Wade said in the letter released to the Associated Press. "I started my NBA career with the Miami Heat in 2003, and it has been an honor to have played with them and help build a winning franchise with three NBA championships."
As ESPN Stats & Info observed, Wade departs as the all-time franchise leader in just about everything:
Even last season, Wade's 13th in the league, he was Miami's high man in total points, field goals and steals. But at 34 years old, his fight with Father Time was beginning to take its toll. Several of his advanced stats—including a 20.3 player efficiency rating, 51.7 true shooting percentage and 0.8 box plus/minus—were either career lows or the worst marks since his rookie year.
The Heat deemed his past, present and future worthy of a two-year, $40 million commitment. When the market set the future Hall of Famer's value a little higher, they held their ground. Bad as they may have wanted him to finish his career where it started, they kept their sentiments out of what was ultimately a commercial decision.
"Sad as it sounds, this was the shrewd move for Miami," wrote Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes. "Wade was not a star last year. ... The Heat acted rationally. Coldly, but rationally."
That doesn't change the fact that Miami has some humbling days ahead.
The offense often wilted without Wade last season, averaging a meager 100.6 points per 100 possessions when he sat during the playoffs. And remember, that attack featured two other double-digit scorers who have since abandoned South Beach—Luol Deng (12.3) and Joe Johnson (13.4).
The Heat only have seven players on the books for 2016-17, eight if they match Tyler Johnson's $50 million offer sheet from the Brooklyn Nets, which Wojnarowski reported. Three of those players are entering their sophomore seasons—Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson and Briante Weber—and two others are massive question marks.
Chris Bosh, the club's new leader in salary and statistics, has had two consecutive seasons derailed by blood clots. There has yet to be any clarification on his status. Hassan Whiteside, now the No. 2 man in both categories, just made an unprecedented leap from minimum salary to maximum contract.
It's anyone's guess how the 27-year-old will handle his newfound security.
Miami's roster is still taking shape, and there's now an extra $20 million to help with that effort. But the Heat's new biggest priority is maintaining flexibility for a potentially transformational 2017 summer. Both the free-agent crop and draft class look stacked, and Miami could pull players from each.
"While the Heat will not simply tank the 2016-17 season, every move from this point will certainly be made with an eye on 2017 free agency..." wrote Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post. "Miami also owns its first-round draft pick next year, which could be valuable if this season goes haywire."
Riley and head coach Erik Spoelstra have the tools to build any type of team they covet.
It wouldn't be that hard to reconstruct a win-now roster if Bosh returns to his All-Star form. Goran Dragic will look dramatically different without Wade, especially if Miami finds a better-shooting, less ball-dominant backcourt partner. Dragic averaged 18.9 points and 8.1 assists per 100 possessions with the Wade last season, 25.6 and 9.9 without. Whiteside is still developing and already producing like a star.
The Heat still have Riley to wow free agents, plus a tropical climate and no state income taxes. There are clubs with far fewer carrots to dangle, and that's without knowing how Miami fills the roster between now and then.
Or the Heat could head in the opposite direction and embrace a youth movement. If Bosh doesn't return, they may not have a choice. They could then field offers for Dragic and replenish some of the future assets they sacrificed to acquire him.
There aren't many more intriguing young trios than Whiteside, Winslow and Richardson. Johnson is a perfect fit if he stays, and Weber already looks like a potent defensive weapon. The group needs more high-end talent, but that just happens to be what the next draft reportedly offers.
"This projected 2017 class could be legendary," wrote B/R's Jonathan Wasserman. "... Between projected one-and-dones and expected breakout sophomores, juniors and seniors, 2017's field could be one of the strongest in recent memory."
Betting big on the draft has never been Riley's style, and it's hard to envision the Heat falling far enough out of the playoff race to claim a jackpot lottery prize. But remember, the new Heat won't be like the old Heat. They need a new face for the first time since 2003. They're shopping for a new identity, too, since loyalty is no longer the word of the day in South Beach.
"The curtain has been yanked back on 'family' and 'trust,' and 'Heat Lifer' and every other mythological underpinning of a blue-ribbon franchise to the point it's in an uncomfortable predicament today and for its immediate tomorrows," wrote Dave Hyde of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Uncertainty isn't automatically a bad thing, though. Once Kevin Durant wasn't coming to Miami, a championship wasn't, either. Keeping Wade would have meant staying close to the NBA's elite but never threatening to join the group.
This new path—admittedly sorrowful and scary for the time being—will lead to something different. After squeezing what it could out of Wade and his super-friends, Miami won't have an easy time getting over this emotionally, but this looks better for the business over the long haul.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com. Salary information obtained via Basketball Insiders.
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