Udonis Haslem Hopes To Play With Wade Again

As we noted earlier today, Dwyane Wade admitted on Saturday morning that the one think he’ll miss most about playing for the Heat is his longtime teammate Udonis Haslem. Per Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald, that feeling is mutual. Haslem referred to Wade as “family,” adding that he’ll support him “through thick and thin.”

Haslem and Wade have been teammates in Miami since the 2003/04 season, but with Wade having signed in Chicago earlier this summer, they’ll be opponents in 2016/17. Still, both players can hit the free agent market again next year, and they likely won’t retire quite yet, so there’s a realistic chance of a reunion at some point, as Haslem told Jackson.

“I’m going to damn sure try,” Haslem said, when asked about the possibility of potentially finishing his career alongside Wade. “I mean, I don’t know. I guess I’ve got to wait until next summer to see how that goes. But, I never give up without a fight. So there’s ain’t no time to start now.”

While Wade heads to Chicago, Haslem is preparing to enter his 14th season with the Heat, and while he’d like to reunite with Wade eventually, he may not want to leave Miami to do so. “I was thinking more him of him coming here,” Haslem said. “I never said [I’d leave the Heat]. I won’t ever say that. When I said play with him again, I never said leave.”

The idea of Wade eventually returning to South Beach for one final season with Haslem may appeal to the 36-year-old big man and to many Heat fans, but as Jackson observes, it’s not clear how realistic that scenario is. Heat president Pat Riley and Wade didn’t part on the best of terms, having still not communicated with one another since the former Finals MVP left the Heat more than two months ago.

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