Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat are embroiled in a sticky contract situation.
It’s quite simple—the Heat want Wade to exercise his $16.1 million player option for the 2015-16 season, while Wade wants to be paid more with a longer commitment from Miami.
The veteran shooting guard has until June 29 to decide whether he will opt in or opt out of his current contract. Reports have indicated that Miami has offered him as little as under $10 million a year on a new contract, while sources have cited that Wade would “welcome” $20 million a year on average.
The 11-time All-Star is undoubtedly the greatest player in franchise history. He has helped bring three NBA championships to a franchise that hadn’t even advanced to an NBA Finals before he was drafted in 2003.
While it’s true Wade is a living legend, the NBA is a business and if the Heat want to be back in championship contention in the near future, the 12-year veteran will have to realize he won’t be earning anywhere near $20 million a year from Miami.
Here are 10 reasons why Wade should take a pay cut on his new contract whether that is this year or next offseason:
1. Age
“Flash” is 33 years old and clearly not the superstar he once was.
During the 2006 NBA Finals, Wade literally put the rest of the Heat squad on his back in leading the franchise to its first championship. In the dark years of the franchise from 2008 until 2010, he carried rosters with very little talent to the postseason while leading the league in scoring.
It’s 2015 now, and it’s been a good three years since Wade has been an upper echelon player in this league. Elite players get paid $20 million per year, and the reality is that Wade is no longer in that category.
Next: Injuries
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2. Injuries
Over the past four seasons, the Heat’s star shooting guard has missed a plethora of games whether due to injury or because of a maintenance program designed to keep him fresh for the postseason.
Wade’s number of games missed from the 2011-12 season to the 2014-15 season looks like this—17, 13, 28 and 20 games.
Whether it’s a bothersome hamstring or knee injuries, the 33-year-old has had a hard time staying on the court.
Next: Salary Cap
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3. Salary Cap
The Heat will benefit from the new media deal that kicks in for the league heading into the 2016-17 season. During that offseason, the salary cap of each team will skyrocket from $67 million to roughly $89 million. While that extra dough certainly helps matters such as this one, the Heat already have $23 million on average tied up to Chris Bosh over the next four seasons.
If the organization gives Wade around $20 million on average, it will have roughly half of its salary cap devoted to two players that are past their prime.
Next: Goran Dragic
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4. Goran Dragic
Making matters even more pressing is the situation in regards to impending free agent Goran Dragic.
Dragic has already declared he will opt out and enter free agency to see what his value is on the market. However, he has also made it clear that he would prefer to return to Miami.
While his intentions are to return to Miami, he is not going to give the franchise a hometown discount. He is likely to command a max contract, which means that that’s another $20 million a year Pat Riley and company will have to hand to a player.
In the case of Dragic, it’s warranted because he’s in the thick of his prime (29 years old) and the Heat desperately need a franchise point guard.
So assuming Miami gives Wade and Dragic what they want, they will have at least $60 million in salary devoted to just three players.
Yeah, that’s just not going to happen.
Next: Hassan Whiteside
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5. Hassan Whiteside
Making matters even further complicated is the impending free agency of Hassan Whiteside during the 2016 offseason.
Whiteside will be just 27 years of age next year, meaning he will very well command a hefty contract with the new media deal coming into play for the league. As one of the league’s biggest surprises of the 2014-15 season, Whiteside established himself as one of the league’s top threats on the glass and on the defensive side of things.
Taking into account the contract of Bosh, the likely max contract offer to Dragic and assuming Wade stays at a salary figure of around $16 million per season, this would mean that Miami would have roughly $61 million in salary commitments to those three players alone.
Even with the $89 million salary cap figure for 2016, that makes it near impossible for the franchise to even consider re-signing Whiteside as they won’t have much money to devote to filling out the remaining eight spots on the active roster.
Next: Legacy
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6. Legacy
It’s what seemingly every Hall of Fame talent wants—to play for one NBA team his entire career.
Kobe Bryant has done it with the Los Angeles Lakers, while Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks and Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs have also accomplished this when it comes to active NBA players.
Wade can very well accomplish the same feat. There is little doubt that history tends to look at players who played with one squad their entire careers in a better light.
“Flash” is a superstar that understands image and obviously places a lot of emphasis on how he is looked at by his fan base.
If he wants to further cement his legacy, he will sacrifice a little financially for his own sake.
Next: Still Due $16.1 Million for 2015-16
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7. Still Due $16.1 Million for the 2015-16 Season
All things considered, Wade is due a nice $16.1 million salary for the 2015-16 season. That is, if he still wants it.
All Wade has to do is exercise his player option for the coming season. As long as he does that, he will earn another $16.1 million. This would make him the 16th-highest paid player for that particular season. The only other individual who is older than D-Wade in the top 40 of the highest-paid players for the 2015-16 season is the Brooklyn Nets’ Joe Johnson.
Simply put, $16.1 million is a great deal for somebody of Wade’s age.
Next: Best Situation is in Miami
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8. Best Situation is in Miami
Where will Wade go if he decides Miami won’t offer him enough money? Play with the Lakers in Los Angeles where he and Kobe Bryant will fight over who brings the ball up court?
Riley and the franchise are completely committed to bringing No. 3 back to South Beach. The organization is loyal to Wade and they want him to retire in a Heat jersey.
However, loyalty can only go so far. Wade has to understand that while he wants more money, the franchise cannot realistically do that while continuing to build a contender.
Next: Shouldn’t End Career Like Kobe Bryant
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9. Shouldn’t End Career Like Kobe Bryant
Kobe is arguably one of the top 10 greatest players of all-time.
Having said that, there is little doubt that the past two seasons of Bryant’s career will slightly tarnish his legacy when it’s all said and done.
It already feels like long ago when Kobe was considered a better player than LeBron James and was regarded by many as the best player of his generation.
Fast forward through two non-playoff losing seasons for Kobe and the Lakers, and people now hold Duncan on a higher pedestal than the Laker great.
During the last two years of his NBA career (assuming he retires in 2016 as planned), Bryant will have earned at least $23 million in each of those seasons. In fact, after a season which saw him appear in just 35 games while shooting 37.3 percent from the field, Kobe was the NBA’s highest-paid player at $23.5 million.
This is what happens when a franchise becomes too loyal to an individual based upon a storied legacy and past accomplishments.
Next: Allow Heat to Make Run at Free Agents in 2016
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10. Allow Heat to Make Run at Free Agents in 2016
Wade can’t have both—he either wants the money or he wants to continue winning championships.
If he wants the latter, he will have to take a sizeable pay cut to make that happen. If Miami is able to retain both Dragic and/or Whiteside in the near future, while bringing in former MVP Kevin Durant during the 2016 offseason, there is no doubt Miami is an instant contender, and arguably the favorite to win the NBA championship that season.
However, if Wade wants to continue pulling in nearly $20 million a season even as he enters the last few years of his career, his playing days won’t end with a championship—it’ll end with more losing seasons like the one the Heat endured in 2014-15.
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