Sources: Bulls agree to a buyout with Dwyane Wade
A subject that Miami Heat President Pat Riley danced around just days ago now has been opened for a possible embrace.
Two days prior to the opening of training camp, the Chicago Bulls, according to multiple outlets, agreed Sunday to a buyout with Dwyane Wade that will make the former Heat guard a free agent once he clears the NBA‘s 48-hour waiver period.
A potential Wade return has been embraced by several members of the current Heat roster, including Hassan Whiteside, Dion Waiters, Wayne Ellington and Udonis Haslem, who spent extensive time with Wade during the offseason.
Wade left the Heat in the 2016 offseason for a twoyear contract in excess of the $40 million offered over that span by the Heat. According to ESPN, Wade agreed to forego approximately $8 million of the $23.8 million he otherwise would have received from the Bulls this season.
The Heat have only a $4.3 million mid-level exception to offer Wade, having gone above the salary cap this offseason to re-sign James Johnson, Waiters and Ellington, as well as to add forward Kelly Olynyk.
Whether that is enough to entice a homecoming could come down to whether Wade instead pursues teams with better championship odds.
Among the possibilities for Wade would be a reunion with LeBron James with the Cleveland Cavaliers, joining close friend Carmelo Anthony with the Oklahoma City Thunder, being united with friend Chris Paul with the Houston Rockets or potentially signing with one of the teams in Los Angeles, where Wade spent most of his offseason.
Asked lastweek about the possibility of a reunion with Wade, Riley said, “I feel great about our relationship that we had over the 13 years. Anything that happens from a personnel stand point 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.”
That all changed Sunday, with word of Wade’s agreement with the rebuilding Bulls.
A Heat reunion, however, would require a change in course by the Heat and coach Erik Spoelstra.
Waiters stepped into Wade’s starting role last season and was subsequently rewarded with a four-year, $52 million contract in free agency.
In addition to the starting backcourt of Waiters and Goran Dragic, the Heat’s backcourt also is loaded with youthful backcourt options, such as Tyler Johnson, Josh Richardson and Rodney McGruder, in addition to Ellington.
In the wake of Wade’s departure last summer, the Heat moved a ball-movement offense that emphasized 3-point shooting. Wade, who has struggled from distance with his outside shot, had been more of a halfcourt, isolation presence during his break through Heat seasons.