The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand claimed on Tuesday morning that ESPN has an interest in employing former Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade in its studio shows.
ESPN is interested in Dwyane Wade for its studio shows. pic.twitter.com/1QuXwmiM1K
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) October 15, 2024
“In terms of their No. 1 team, I think they’re waiting till around Christmas — maybe turn of the year — if they’re gonna add somebody to Mike Breen and Doris Burke,” Marchand said of the ESPN network. “I still think they’re looking outside — Dwyane Wade, I think, is a possibility more for studio. Possibly still that they have some interest in him, even though I don’t think it’s that far down the road yet.”
A report in August hinted that Wade will get serious consideration from networks such as Amazon and NBC for broadcasting positions.
“There will be a significant number of NBA broadcasting jobs open given NBC and Amazon will enter the market in 2025 as media rights-holders,” wrote The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch. “Given his Hall of Fame profile and the reps he undertook in Paris, Dwyane Wade will get a serious look from networks if he’s interested. Wade said he’s worked with both a speech and vocal coach for preparation.”
That report came not long after Wade wrapped up his stint as a color commentator in the 2024 Paris Olympics for NBC. During one of his broadcasts, someone took to X to call the three-time NBA champion corny. Wade responded to the social media post but also took the high road by thanking the person for tuning in regardless.
Sometimes Iam my guy. Appreciate you listening anyways https://t.co/OFrRi1feZC
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) July 31, 2024
Interestingly, Wade served as a broadcaster for the Olympics in games that his former teammate in LeBron James played in.
James and Wade — who were both selected in the first round of the 2003 NBA Draft — were teammates on the Heat in the 2010s, and they won a pair of titles together in 2012 and 2013. The former is heading into his 22nd NBA season and hasn’t shown any noticeable signs of decline as he’s aged. As for the latter, he retired following the 2018-19 campaign after some unspectacular seasons to wrap up what was a spectacular NBA career.
Now that Wade has some broadcasting reps under his belt and shown that he’s capable of being an entertaining as well as informative commentator, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if he soon joins the long list of former NBA players to work for ESPN. A pair of former Cleveland Cavaliers in Kendrick Perkins and Richard Jefferson currently work for the network as studio analysts.
Tim Legler also stands out as another former NBA player who works in front of the camera for ESPN. He played 10 seasons in the NBA with six different teams, including the Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks.
All signs over the past few months are pointing to the idea that Wade will land a broadcasting gig in the near future, whether it be with ESPN or another network.
