Riley guarded while discussing Wade buyout
MIAMI — The last time Heat President Pat Riley spoke in depth about Dwyane Wade, it was about the hurt of the franchise icon getting away during 2016 free agency,
Friday, Riley again spoke from the heart about 35-year-old future Hall of Famer, but in measured tones, with Wade still under contract to the Bulls, albeit amid increasing talk about a potential buyout in advance of next week’s start of training camp.
“I feel great about our relationship that we had over the 13 years,” Riley said at AmericanAirlines Arena. “Anything that happens from a personnel standpoint down the road or any opportunities that are there, we’re always going to approach that.
“But right now he’s under contract with Chicago, and I wish him the very best.”
The Heat retain a $4.3 million mid-level salary-cap exception, with Wade due $23.8 million this season from the Bulls on the second year of the contract that lured him away from the Heat a year ago.
Bulls Executive Vice President John Paxson on Thursday told Chicago’s The Score radio of buyout talk: “Some dialogue is going on. We understand where he is at this time of his career. We’re more than willing to work with him.”
Riley said what will endure are Wade’s accomplishment’s over his 13 seasons with the Heat, including three NBA titles.
Dragic ready
Goran Dragic said Friday from Slovenia that he does not anticipate any fatigue concerns when the Heat open training camp Tuesday at Florida Atlantic University.
Dragic and the Slovenian national team won the EuroBasket championship last Sunday, with Dragic to arrive Sunday in South Florida.
“If you ask me, I can start practicing twice a day. I’ve had enough rest the last few days, four days off without basketball,” he said. “I think so, I can come out and be fresh in training camp.”
Dragic scored 35 points in the championship game against Serbia before sitting out some of the closing stages due to cramping, named Most Valuable Player after Slovenia’s 9-0 run during the three-week tournament.
“The exhaustion level is probably going to be the same as last year, nothing to worry about,” Dragic said, having arrived to Heat camp last fall after EuroBasket qualifying and then having thrived early in the season.
Dragic, 31, announced his retirement from the Slovenian national team in advance of EuroBasket. He joked Friday by phone that he may have to override a government edict to remain retired from the national team.
“I said many, many times that I’m officially retiring from the national team. But here are some crazy people in Slovenia,” he said with a laugh. “They said that they are going to go to the consulate, of the politics, that they’re going to do a referendum on me to not retire. So I don’t know. I don’t know. I said it in the media. I told my coaches this is the best way to end my national-team career, on the top of Europe.”