NBA Rumors: Dwyane Wade Leaving Chicago Bulls, Four Teams In Line To Sign Him
The Chicago Bulls are buying out the contract of Dwyane Wade, which should come as no shock since the team wants to rebuild with a young nucleus this year. The question next concerns who Wade will sign with and ESPN had exclusive breaking news concerning his eventual destination. In what should come as no surprise to anyone, the Cleveland Cavaliers are the top team favored to sign Dwyane when his buyout completes.
CBS Sports reported that the Chicago Bulls reached the agreement to buyout Dwyane Wade and allow him to leave the team. Wade had agreed to a $24 million player option before the team chose to trade Jimmy Butler and start over from scratch.
Reunion with LeBron James
This comes as no surprise because Dwyane Wade made it to the NBA Finals four times in a row with LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Since that dynasty ended, LeBron has made it to three straight NBA Finals with the Cleveland Cavaliers while Wade languished with the depleted Heat and then struggled in his one season when he returned to his hometown of Chicago to play with the Chicago Bulls. Rejoining James in Cleveland gives Dwyane one more chance to make it to the NBA Finals again.
The Cavaliers have done little in the way of building a team around LeBron James this past offseason. They still have Kevin Love and did just trade Kyrie Irving for Isaiah Thomas, although Thomas won’t be healthy until later in the season. If the Cavs bring in Dwyane Wade, they could push for one more NBA title opportunity before LeBron possibly leaves in 2018.
Other possible destinations for Wade
The Cleveland Cavaliers are the top team in line to sign Dwyane Wade when his Chicago Bulls buyout comes through but they are not the only team that could bring in Wade. Also rumored to be interested in Wade are the Oklahoma City Thunder, Miami Heat, and San Antonio Spurs. Out of those teams, the Heat seems very likely as a second choice while the Thunder seems an interesting possibility.
When it comes to the Miami Heat, president Pat Riley said that “any opportunities that are there, we’re always going to approach that.” Ever since Wade left Miami, the team that he led to numerous NBA title opportunities, there was talk about how the relationship ended as well as the open possibility that Wade could return. Miami is home to Dwyane Wade and he will almost surely retire there. Returning this year is a possibility.
As for the Oklahoma City Thunder, they have traded for Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, who will play the forward positions for the Thunder, and have reigning NBA MVP Russell Westbrook as their point guard. With Steven Adams at center, Dwyane Wade could slip in nicely at shooting guard and give the Thunder one of the top starting lineups in the NBA.
[Featured Image by Rob Foldy/Getty Images]
