NBA Rumors: Miami Heat Signing Dion Waiters From Oklahoma City Thunder

Sometimes, NBA free agents take a gamble on themselves and lose. According to Yahoo! Sports, the Miami Heat are signing Dion Waiters to a two-year contract worth approximately $6 million. That is a lot less money than the dynamic shooting guard was hoping to score when he opted out of his deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Some details have been released about the contract that Dion Waiters is signing with the Miami Heat. The second year is a player option, which means that the former Syracuse Orange star can try to capitalize on free agency again next summer. In order to do that, though, Waiters will need to put up some big numbers.

With Dwyane Wade leaving in free agency to sign with the Chicago Bulls, his hometown team, the Miami Heat will have a void at shooting guard. They will also have plenty of shots available, as the 6-foot-4 guard was the primary focus on offense for the Heat last season.

Though it is going to be impossible for anyone to fill the shoes of Dwyane Wade, arguably the great player in the history of the Miami Heat organization, someone is going to have to fill in for him in the starting lineup.

Dion Waiters is going to get a chance to replace Dwyane Wade in the starting lineup. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard will be competing with Josh Richardson, a player that the Miami Heat view as someone that could be a building block for the franchise for years to come.

Another player that Dion Waiters will be competing with is Tyler Johnson. The 23-year-old shooting guard made some headlines this summer when the Miami Heat decided to match the $50 million contract that he signed with the Brooklyn Nets, as reported by SB Nation. With that much money being invested, the Heat coaching staff might feel pressured to play Johnson.

Even with all the competition at shooting guard, the belief is that Dion Waiters chose the Miami Heat because they have a solid recent history of developing younger players. The franchise has turned Tyler Johnson and Hassan Whiteside into hot commodities in the NBA.

When Kevin Durant shocked the NBA by signing with the Golden State Warriors in free agency, the Oklahoma City Thunder had some pretty important decisions to make. Since they wanted to be in a position to lock down star point guard Russell Westbrook for the long term, they decided that Dion Waiters was expendable.

Dion Waiters has played with some of the best players in the NBA. He has been teammates with Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and LeBron James. However, Waiters has proven that he is not afraid to take big shots even with much more established teammates around.

As far as the Oklahoma City Thunder are concerned, the loss of Dion Waiters should not hurt them too badly. They acquired Victor Oladipo from the Orlando Magic by trading away Serge Ibaka, a veteran front court player who excels at defense. The Thunder also signed Alex Abrines, one of the best players in Europe.

Long term wise, though, the Oklahoma City Thunder appears to have their future in peril. In addition to losing Kevin Durant, one of the most gifted players in the NBA, the team is predicted to lose Russell Westbrook as well. The former UCLA Bruins star is more than likely going to be leaving to find a team that can contend for an NBA title.

With a chip on his shoulder and so much money being thrown around in the NBA, Dion Waiters could become one of the biggest surprises in professional sports.