Dwyane Wade Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Reinsdorf Bullish On Wade-Rondo-Butler Trio

September 8th, 2016 at 5:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf believes that the headstrong trio of Dwyane Wade, Rajon Rondo and Jimmy Butler will be successful because they’re “high character guys who want it to work,” K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Wade and Rondo signed with Chicago as free agents this summer and the club held onto Butler despite trade rumors swirling around him, particularly on draft night. The Bulls are projected to pair up Wade and Rondo in the backcourt while Butler sliding to small forward, though they are all subpar 3-point shooters.

In other highlights of the interview as reported by Johnson:

Reinsdorf expressed surprise that Wade ditched the Heat to join his hometown team (Twitter link). Wade signed a two-year, $47MM deal in mid-July.
The owner believes the team will be “competitive” this season but wouldn’t offer any predictions. Chicago’s failure to make the playoffs last season “bothered me a lot” because “we lost a lot of games to teams we shouldn’t have lost to.” (Twitter links)
Looking back on recent years, Reinsdorf laments the knee injuries that plagued former franchise player Derrick Rose. He had high hopes for the group and its inability to accomplish more during that era was “disappointing.” (Twitter link) Rose was traded to the Knicks in June.
Joakim Noah‘s leadership and involvement in the community will be missed but Reinsdorf is happy that the free agent center “got that kind of money.” (Twitter link). Noah signed a four-year, $72MM pact with the Knicks.

Central Notes: Wade, George, Seraphin, Novak

September 2nd, 2016 at 9:31am CST by Arthur Hill

Dwyane Wade‘s reasons for signing with the Bulls after 13 years in Miami transcend basketball, relays ESPN.com. In an interview with Good Morning America that aired today, Wade said he hopes to serve as a voice to help end the wave of gun violence that has infected Chicago. That violence touched Wade’s family last week when his 32-year-old cousin, Nykea Aldridge, was killed in the city by a stray bullet. Wade, who grew up on Chicago’s South Side, and his mother, Jolina Wade, a former drug dealer, participated in a series of panel discussions on gun violence just before Aldridge was shot. “Now I’m back in the city of Chicago — I’m back for a reason,” Wade said. “I played 13 years in Miami. Now I’m back in the city, let me see what I can do as one person to help lend my voice and help shed light on the tragedy that’s going on and find a solution to start the process of making change.”

There’s more news out of the Central Division:

The Pacers‘ agreement with Kevin Seraphin should have little effect on a planned long-term extension for Paul George, tweets Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. Indiana needs to free up just $3.802MM to get George to his maximum salary for this season, Kyler notes. George will become eligible for an extension on September 25th.
Several European teams, particularly FC Barcelona, had expressed strong interest in Seraphin before he signed with the Pacers, according to Orazio Cauchi of Sportando.
Steve Novak was given the power to block a trade when he re-signed with the Bucks on Monday, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. The 33-year-old free agent accepted a one-year, $1,551,659 deal to return to Milwaukee, where he played just three games last season before suffering a sprained left MCL.

And-Ones: Salary Record, LeBron, CBA, D-League

August 12th, 2016 at 2:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA’s record $24MM television deal is playing out just as predicted, writes Mitch Lawrence of Forbes. With LeBron James signing a three-year, $100MM deal with the Cavaliers, a record 17 teams now have the highest-paid players in franchise history on their current rosters. However, most of them are players who re-signed with their current teams or agreed to contract extensions. The only players who earned that distinction by changing teams this summer are Atlanta’s Dwight Howard, Boston’s Al Horford and Golden State’s Kevin Durant.

There’s more NBA-related news this afternoon:

Because James has a player option for the third season of his new contract, he can become a free agent in July of 2018, along with Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony, tweets Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders. In March, James made headlines by speculating on the possibility of the four close friends one day joining forces.
A “super max” contract is among several changes the NBA and the players union should consider in a new collective bargaining agreement, suggests Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. That provision would allow for a contract that is 40% of the salary cap, but would only count as a normal maximum deal against the cap. It would be available only to a player who remains with his current team and it would not be tradeable. Kyler also would like to see a third round added to the draft to help teams stock their D-League affiliates, a two-way contract with different salaries when players are in the NBA and D-League, and minimum qualifications that players would have to meet before being eligible for maximum contracts.
The D-League will holds its national tryouts Sunday in Manhattan, tweets Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor. Among the players who received invitations are Sterling Gibbs of Connecticut, Jonathan Holton of West Virginia, Chris Obekpa of St John’s and Markus Kennedy of SMU (Twitter link).

Dwyane Wade On: Butler, Riley, Chicago

July 29th, 2016 at 5:41pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Longtime face of the Miami Heat franchise, Dwyane Wade, was officially introduced today as a member of the Bulls. The veteran inked a two-year, $47MM deal with Chicago this offseason, leaving behind the only NBA team he had ever known. Wade addressed members of the media today and touched on a number of subjects. The transcription comes courtesy of ESPN.com and Ethan J. Skolnick of The Miami Herald. Here are some of the highlights from Wade’s press conference:

Discussing who the “alpha” is on the new-look Bulls:

“This is Jimmy’s team. It won’t be a tug and pull whose team it is.” Wade then recalled the 2004 offseason when Miami acquired big man Shaquille O’Neal, saying, “We had no championships at the time and I remember his press conference. I was playing in the Olympics at the time, like Jimmy is right now. And I remember Shaq said, ‘We’re not going to go through this all year. This is Dwyane Wade’s team.’ So, we’re not going to go through this all year. This is Jimmy Butler‘s team. Myself and Rajon Rondo are here to bring what we bring as athletes to this team and to this city. He’s the young Bull on this team. He’s a 26-year-old who can play 40 minutes if coach wants him to and maybe more. I ain’t trying to do all that. And we’re going to depend on him a lot.”

Discussing if he chose Chicago because of a rift with Heat president Pat Riley:

“I have no rift with Pat Riley. It’s funny the reports come out about a lot of different things. I’ve never seen nobody around me and Pat when me and him was talking. I didn’t see no one CC’d on the emails that we talk about. I have nothing but respect for what he’s done in this game. I have so much to learn. So I have no rift in that. This year, the direction and the focus for that organization in Miami — which I have nothing but love and respect for — was a little different than it has been in years past.

With that being said, my direction and my focus was a little different than it had been in year’s past. I communicated with them that ‘Hey I’ve only done this once, but I’m going to be a free agent. I’m going to go out and see what the market is saying about me.’ And, like I said, this opportunity with Chicago when first I said I was going to be a free agent, this was nothing that we all knew was going to happen. But it was things that happened along the way that made this even realer and realer. I made the decision.

I had a contract offer in Miami that I could have took. I decided not to take it. It was my decision to be selfish and to live out a dream of mine. I’ve brought a lot of excitement to Miami and it’s a home to me. It will always be. I want to bring a little bit here to Chicago when I have a little bit left. So, let’s clear up the notion that Pat Riley orchestrated me getting out of Miami because he didn’t offer me the money I wanted. This was not a money deal. If this was a money deal I wouldn’t be sitting here. I would have taken the most money. At the end of the day this is a place I wanted to be.”

Discussing Riley’s role, or lack thereof, in his recruitment this summer:

“I dealt with (team owner) Micky Arison, Nick Arison when it came to my contracts the last two years. That’s what he means when he said he wasn’t involved, meaning he didn’t sit at the table. He didn’t call or email or text or nothing like that to try to sway me or try to get me back. I guess that’s what he meant.

I dealt with two people I respect in the organization. And like I said, at the end of the day it wasn’t about Pat Riley, it wasn’t about Micky, it wasn’t about Nick. It was about me. I told that to the Arison family in our meeting. They asked me, ‘What else? Is there anything else we can do? I said, ‘This is a decision I’m going to have to make. And I made that decision.’

I wasn’t looking for Pat to reach out to me. That wasn’t the focus of mine. My focus was making the best decision for my family. He has to make the best decision for the organization, which he has done an amazing job over his tenure there. And we all benefited from it.“

Atlantic Notes: Anthony, Nets, Bentil

July 28th, 2016 at 4:36pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Like many around the NBA, Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony was taken by surprise that Dwyane Wade left the Heat to join the Bulls this offfseason, Nick Friedell of ESPN.com writes. “I was shocked,” Anthony said. “I was shocked more from a standpoint it was just hard to see. It’s hard to see some players in different uniforms and he’s one of those guys who I never thought I would see in a different uniform other than Miami. But it happened, and I got a chance to talk to him and sit down with him and really dig deep about his feelings and what happened. He’s at peace now. And when he’s at peace, I’m at peace with it.”

Melo also took the time to express his happiness at the Knicks’ new-look roster, Friedell adds. “We love them,” Anthony said. “We love those additions. And we’re looking forward to getting the season going. And I think everybody is excited, the excitement is back. Right now there’s an adjustment on paper, but of course we have some work to do putting it all together, making it work. But we’re going to ride the wave of this excitement right now.”

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The Celtics have a crowded roster with 18 players currently under contract, and as a result, will have some difficult decisions to make during the preseason. Logan Mullen of 93.7FM’s Green Street broke down who he thinks will make the regular season roster and who is ticketed for Boston’s D-League affiliate in Maine.
The Nets are stressing patience as the team rebuilds, which is a marked change from how the team has operated under owner Mikhail Prokhorov in the past, notes David Aldridge of NBA.com. “This goes from ownership all the way down,” GM Sean Marks said. “When Mikhail wrote his letter 9to season ticket holders), the lessons he learned, that sort of stood out. It stood out for me, that a guy of his stature realized, we’re going to go in a different direction this time. Now it’s up to us to put a product on the floor that’s going to be sustainable, and not just for a fleeting moment. I understand there could be some trying times here for the organization. We’re not going to win 50 games next year. We get that. But if we can put a product on the floor that we can be proud of, that fans can appreciate, if fans know that we’ll compete every night, that’ll speak volumes. Especially the Brooklyn-New York fan base will appreciate that.”
Ben Bentil‘s three-year contract with the Celtics includes a partial guarantee of $250K for the first season, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
Unrestricted free agent Shane Larkin, who appeared in 78 games for the Nets in 2015/16, has switched agents and is now represented by Jim Tanner of Tandem Sports, Liz Mullen of The Sports Business Journal tweets.
The Celtics have officially renounced their rights to Gigi Datome, Pincus relays (on Twitter). The 27-year-old last appeared in the league during the 2014/15 campaign.

Heat Notes: Green, James, Wade, Riley

July 23rd, 2016 at 7:17pm CST by Arthur Hill

The addition of James Johnson, Derrick Williams and Wayne Ellington left no room in Miami for Gerald Green, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Green, who agreed to terms with the Celtics this morning, spent one season in Miami and saw his playing time decline steadily as the year wore on. He appeared in 69 games, starting 14, and averaged 8.9 points per night. Green had expressed a desire to return to Miami, Winderman writes, and the Heat could have offered the same $1.4MM deal he received from Boston. Miami made it clear that the 30-year-old swingman wasn’t in its plans by signing Johnson, Williams and Ellington to be part of an already crowded rotation that includes Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson and Tyler Johnson. Amar’e Stoudemire and Dorell Wright are now the only remaining unsigned free agents from the 2015/16 roster.

There’s more news out of Miami:

As players become more powerful, the idea of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul on the same team becomes more likely, Winderman writes in another piece. During the season, James speculated on the possibility of the four friends someday joining forces.
Team president Pat Riley recently offered some insight on teaming up James, Wade and Chris Bosh in 2010, Winderman relates in the same article. All three were slated to get max deals of $16.5MM per season, but they wanted to add Mike Miller and re-sign Udonis Haslem. Eventually, Wade volunteered to take less money, and James and Bosh agreed to sign-and trades. “The interesting part is on July 9th, they all agreed to come in on five-year deals, room only, so I didn’t have to give up any assets,” Riley said. “Then, at the 11th hour, they all wanted the sixth year. You know what that cost me and Andy [Elisburg, the Heat’s general manager]? That cost us four picks. I just said to them, ‘If you want the sixth year because I know you’re going to opt out after the fourth anyhow, but if you want the sixth year, I don’t want any of you to walk into my office and say, ‘Hey, can we get any young guys around here? Can we get some draft picks around here?’ Because they were gone.”
Riley’s decision to add more physical players this offseason was likely a matter of taking what was available on the market, rather than a strategy, Winderman writes in a separate piece. Winderman’s comment came in response to a reader’s question on whether acquiring Johnson, Williams, Luke Babbitt and Willie Reed would make the Heat more like the roster Riley had with the Knicks.

Eastern Notes: Anthony, Wade, Meeks, Reed

July 20th, 2016 at 9:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

Carmelo Anthony believes bad timing is all that prevented Dwyane Wade from joining him on the Knicks, relays Marc Berman of The New York Post. Wade sent shock waves throughout the NBA earlier this month when he agreed to leave the Heat and sign with the Bulls. Anthony says if Wade’s situation had become apparent earlier, the Knicks could have freed up the cap room to fit him on the roster. “There was a chance, definitely a chance,’’ Anthony said. “We would’ve had to pull a rabbit out of a hat in the 25th hour though. There was a chance. If it was two days earlier, we probably would’ve had Dwyane Wade.”

After signing free agent center Joakim Noah for $72MM over four years, New York had just enough cap room left to offer Wade the contract he wanted. However, it would have meant not signing Courtney Lee and Brandon Jennings and renouncing the rights to Lance Thomas. Looking ahead, Anthony thinks the Knicks have the pieces in place to be major players in the 2017 free agent market.

There’s more tonight from the Eastern Conference:

Newly acquired Magic shooting guard Jodie Meeks is out indefinitely after undergoing foot surgery Tuesday, writes Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Meeks needed the procedure to stabilize the fifth metatarsal in his right foot, which he fractured early last season. Doctors offered little clue as to when Meeks might be able to play again. Orlando acquired him in a June 29th trade, sending a second-round pick to the Pistons in return.
Former Magic guard Devyn Marble is getting interest from teams in Europe and China, according to Orazio Cauchi of Sportando. Marble, who spent two years in Orlando, was traded to the Clippers last week and subsequently waived in a cost-cutting move.
After passing up better offers and signing with the Heat, Willie Reed believes he’s in a perfect situation, writes Shandel Richardson of The Sun-Sentinel. After going undrafted and playing in Spain and the D-League, Reed’s future now appears secure after joining Miami on a two-year veteran’s minimum deal. He is expected to back up newly re-signed center Hassan Whiteside. After two seasons on the Heat’s summer league team, Reed knew he wanted to play for Miami. “I wanted to be able to come to the Heat [this offseason],” Reed said. “I told my agent that if I was able to get a minimum deal with the Heat, I’d take it just because what they did for me.”

Central Notes: Lawson, Bird, McDermott

July 20th, 2016 at 6:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

Ty Lawson feels “overlooked” in free agency and tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated the team that signs him is going to get a significant bargain. Lawson says he never really felt comfortable with the Rockets or Pacers last season after being traded away from Denver during the summer. Lawson quickly lost his starting spot in Houston and averaged 5.8 points and 3.4 assists over 53 games. The Pacers picked him up after the Rockets waived him, and he saw just 18.1 minutes per night in 13 games with Indiana. Lawson, whose reputation has suffered after four DUI arrests and a stint in rehab, says he managed to stay clean last season and is ready to prove that he is still an elite player. “It would be big to be back to my old self again,” he said. “Also, it’s not for just me, it’s for my parents. They have had a hard time seeing what I’ve been going through. I know they hear the little comments at NBA games. To make them proud again would mean the world to me.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

Pacers president of basketball operations Larry Bird has done almost a complete roster rebuild in three seasons, writes Gregg Doyel of The Indianapolis Star. Paul George is the only player left from the team that reached the Eastern Conference finals in back-to-back seasons. Bird’s latest move came when he signed ex-Bull Aaron Brooks to serve as a backup to recently acquired point guard Jeff Teague. In addition to the roster turnover, Bird made a coaching chance this summer, firing Frank Vogel and replacing him with Nate McMillan.
Doug McDermott thinks Dwyane Wade is just what the Bulls needed to become a contender in the East again, relays Sam Smith of Bulls.com. McDermott, who is coming off a breakthrough second season in the NBA, is part of the select squad that is practicing this week with the U.S. Olympic team. He bristles at the suggestion that Chicago doesn’t have enough outside shooting with Wade expected to start next to Rajon Rondo and Jimmy Butler. “People have been questioning bringing in D. Wade and Rondo, saying they don’t fit [coach Fred Hoiberg‘s] style,” McDermott said. “But we have four or five guys coming off the bench who really do fit Fred’s style and we can gel with those other guys, the superstars. You know Fred will make it work; he’s a brilliant offensive mind and we’re figuring it out defensively as we go along.”

Heat’s Riley: ‘Great Regret’ Over Losing Wade

July 16th, 2016 at 12:24pm CST by Arthur Hill

During a news conference today in Miami, Heat president Pat Riley expressed his sorrow over losing free agent Dwyane Wade to the Bulls and said he should have done more to prevent it. “I have great regret I didn’t put myself in the middle of it,” Riley said in a quote relayed by Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel (Twitter link).

Wade officially signed with Chicago on Friday after reportedly being unhappy with the offers he was getting out of Miami. Riley says he wishes he had taken a more active role in the negotiations, adding that he should have “gotten in a canoe and paddled to The Mediterranean” if it meant keeping Wade, tweets Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post.

Riley said he had been trying to get “another guy” to pair with Wade since LeBron James returned to Cleveland in 2014 (Twitter link). He added that he hadn’t spoken to Wade since his decision, but has been putting together a long e-mail for him (Twitter link).

Wade, a 12-time All-Star, had been with the Heat since they drafted him in 2003. He is the franchise’s leader in career points, assists and several other categories.

“It’s not going to be the same without [Wade] but we will forge ahead,” Riley said. “Dwyane is unique. There will always be a key under the mat [for Dwyane], I just hope it doesn’t get too rusty. We will miss him.” (Twitter links).

Riley touched on several other topics during the news conference:

Any decision on Chris Bosh’s future is “on hold” until August or September, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Bosh, who didn’t play after blood clots were discovered in his left calf during the All-Star break, would like to return next season, but the Heat aren’t sure if it’s medically feasible. Riley said the team is considering a restricted travel schedule or limited workload to help Bosh get back on the court (Twitter link). “I know Chris wants to play, and we would be open to that,” Riley said “But this is still fluid. There’s not an answer.” (Twitter link).
Riley believes Justise Winslow is ready to be Miami’s starting small forward after a promising rookie season. “Are we ready for Justise Winslow to start at the 3,” Riley asked. “I am.” (Twitter link). The Heat lost last year’s starter when Luol Deng signed with the Lakers.
The Heat offered a more balanced contract to Tyler Johnson than the deal he signed with the Nets, but Johnson insisted on taking the offer sheet from Brooklyn (Twitter link). That contract, which the Heat matched on Sunday, pays Johnson $5.628MM in the first year and $5,881,260 in the second, followed by $18,858,765 in season three and $19,631,975 in season four.
Kevin Durant, who chose Miami as one of the five teams he met with in free agency, told Riley that he wants to win right away and viewed the Heat as being in a rebuilding phase (Twitter link). “I’ll never not take an offer from a free agent who calls and says we’d like to talk to you,” Riley said. “We had to do it, it didn’t slow us down.” (Twitter links).
Riley is working toward a contract extension with head coach Erik Spoelstra and his staff (Twitter link).
The Heat don’t plan to use their $2.9MM room exception this offseason. (Twitter link).

Bulls Sign Dwyane Wade

July 15th, 2016 at 8:56pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 15, 8:56pm: The Bulls have issued a press release officially announcing their deal with Wade.

“We are thrilled that Dwyane has decided to come to Chicago,” Bulls GM Gar Forman said in a statement. “It’s not often you get the opportunity to add a three-time champion and 12-time All Star to your roster. We are delighted he has decided to become a Bull, as he provides a great veteran perspective on the court and in the locker room. He will be a tremendous fit with our team.”

JULY 6, 9:50pm: The deal includes a player option for the second year, Wojnarowski tweets.

8:30pm: Dwyane Wade has informed the Bulls that he plans to sign with the team, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports. Wade’s deal will be for $47MM over two seasons. Chicago was the only place Wade could see himself playing outside of Miami, as people close to the shooting guard told Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The deal is pending, as Chicago will need to clear cap space to accommodate a significant contract for the 34-year-old.

The Bulls are working to trade Jose Calderon and Mike Dunleavy in an attempt to clear space. The team has a trade in place for Calderon, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, and Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports via Twitter that the Nets could be a potential trade partner. The Bulls remain confident that they will be able to move Dunleavy before the night is over, Johnson adds on Twitter.

Wade felt the team no longer appreciated him and that, coupled with bitterness over contract talks, led to his departure, sources tell Wojnarowski. The Heat were unwilling to offer a third year, which also factored into Wade not re-signing. Wade is a Chicago native who grew up idolizing Michael Jordan, as Wojnarowski writes.

The Bulls believe having Wade on the roster will not only offer a more competitive team during the 2016/17 season, but it will also help them land a marquee free agent next summer, Johnson tweets. Johnson tweeted earlier in the day that Wade could choose the Bulls without a face-to-face meeting since he met with the team twice back in 2010.

The Heat selected Wade with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2003 draft. He led the team to three NBA titles and five Eastern Conference crowns. The 12-time All-Star will head to Chicago and join Jimmy Butler and newly signed point guard Rajon Rondo in the backcourt.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.