Wade will be offered a 3 yr deal similar to Tim Duncan. They'll let him walk before they got stuck in 7 yr deal.
Wade's contract is technically up after the 2014-15 season, but he has an early termination option after next season and a player option in the last year of his deal. Additionally, his base salary exceeds $20 million in both of the final years of his contract ($20.1 million due next year and $21.6 due in the year after that).
That's a hefty chunk of change for any player, especially one who will be going into his 11th season next year. Even if the team as a whole continues to be successful, we may see a decline in Wade's individual performance in the next two seasons.
Wade has struggled with injuries from season to season, never having played a full 82-game slate during his whole career. What makes him such a liability to get hurt is his style of play that involves a lot more attacking the rim rather than perimeter jump shooting.
Therefore, I don't think it's worth the risk for the Heat to keep Wade beyond next season, especially considering the financial burden his contract carries. It's not a popular opinion among Miami fans, I'm sure, but if the team really wants to keep the success rolling with LeBron James still very much in his prime, then they might have to make a more logical decision over a sentimental one.
It may be a harsh reality to think this too, but the Heat may also benefit from having more cap-conscious talent to surround LeBron with in the future rather than one solid shooting guard in Wade. After seeing how dominant of a force James has been this season and will continue to be, it just makes so much more sense to spend the money on a stronger starting five and deeper bench rather than just three star players.
There's also the other side of this argument, where Wade could continue to play at a high level through the rest of his contract and maybe even sign another multi-year deal to play until retirement as a member of the Heat. I'm not saying that that's not a plausible scenario, I'm just saying that it seems unlikely for a guy who's already seeing decreases in his numbers compared to his career averages.
While it's the last thing in the mind of any Heat fan or team executive at this point of this season, the idea of trading Dwyane Wade may become a more tempting reality going into these next two seasons.
bleacher report
