Miami Heat: Should Miami Consider Trading Dwyane Wade?

Dwyane Wade has been part of all three Miami Heat championship teams and was NBA Finals MVP in 2006. Photo Credit: Mark Runyon, Basketball Schedule

The NBA is a business and a pretty vicious one at that. This means things such as sentiment, history and even loyalty go out the window when owners are presented with the opportunity to win and make money. So, with that said, maybe it is time for the Miami Heat to sever ties with their crown jewel, Dwyane Wade.

Think about, Miami is gasping for some wiggle room in the cap space and shipping the nine-time All-Star’s $18.5 million contract for a couple of pieces to fill some needs makes a lot of sense. After all, moving him is the only move that makes sense.

In order for to even make a dent in their cap salary hole, the Miami Heat have to trade one of the “Big Three,” pure and  simple. Their salaries have crippled Miami’s efforts to add to the squad by taking up more than $56 million of the teams 2013-14 cap room. Shipping one those contracts out is the only way to add to the 2012-13 winning cast.

Although Chris Bosh is not the best of the trio, he is arguably the most important because of his glue-like style of play. Without Bosh’s ever-improving defense and ability to hit midrange-and sometimes 3-point range–shots, Miami just wouldn’t work offensively. His shooting ability spreads the court to create the lanes for others to go to work inside while also keeping the defense honest and they damn sure aren’t about to give up the best player on the planet. That leaves just one viable candidate, 2006 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.

Compatibility

They may be the best of friends off the court, but on the court Wade and LeBron James do not complement each other very well, which sounds weird considering they have just come off back-to-back championships.

The two have very similar styles of play which revolve around getting to the basket and at times utilizing the outside shot. However, Wade’s outside shot has not always been reliable as he shot a less-than-impressive 25 percent from 3-point range last season and his midrange game does betray him from time to time. In fact, during the NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs were backing way off D3 and daring him shoot outside shots. Although having said that, his overall field-goal percentages have been stellar since the inception of the Big 3, as he has a combined average of better than 50 percent over the last three seasons.

Sure, LeBron is considered to be one of the most unselfish superstars in the game but at this point, neither of them is benefitting from the other’s company; they both like to get in the lane and do their damage from the inside, they both need the ball to be effective but both of them can’t have the basketball in their hands all the time.

Still they have found a way to coexist, but with Wade playing Robin to King James’ Batman, essentially just waiting to be called upon and shine when James takes a rest. According to NBA.com’s stats, Wade is a better player offensively when James is off the court because he attempts and makes the shots he wants. Here is a comparison of Wade’s statistics per 100 possessions with James on and off court.

Injuries

Thanks to his reckless abandon style of play which has made him very successful and a treat for basketball fans all over the world, Wade is a lot more susceptible to injury.

Throughout his career, Wade has ended plastered on floor way too much at the end of plays and throughout his career, the Marquette product has struggled with all sorts of injuries, particularly when it comes to his knees. Hell, I am a little surprised he managed to play 69 games last year, considering he had to deal with more knee problems. He received platelet-rich plasma therapy late in the regular season in order to deal with three bone bruises and tendinitis in his right knee. He also had to receive eight hours of treatment as well as having his knee drained before Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

His style of play is fine for a younger man, but at 31 years of age, Wade is seemingly heading toward the twilight years of his career, especially if his body continues to reject him.

Miami’s Needs

This leaves Wade in quite a pickle because it’s now a matter of whether he chooses to abandon the best facet of his game and rely on perimeter shooting, the weakest aspect of his game, to stay healthy. Or continue his crash mentality and further shorten his career. Talk about a lose-lose situation.

After being dead last in rebounds per game with 38.6 boards a contest, Miami’s biggest need right now is size. Therefore, Miami desperately needs to add a high-quality big man or two to their ranks; otherwise they can forget about a three-peat. Greg Oden is still out there, but he has plenty of suitors with more money to offer than the Heat, meaning they will have to look elsewhere for Plan B.

Miami could find a package involving to possibly tempting the Memphis Grizzlies into giving up reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Marc Gasol who would be the perfect fit as defensive anchor and an offensive threat. However, there are other options such as trading for Andrew Bogut, who–like Marc Gasol–is also a big body and can protect the paint while filling up the cup.

The most realistic target could be Houston Rockets center Omer Asik, who reportedly does not fancy taking a back seat to the newly acquired superstar, Dwight Howard. Maybe Miami could put together a multi-team deal to entice a team into giving up a key player for an ailing superstar, even though he could potentially cost more than $60 million over the next three seasons if Wade decides to opt in into his player options.

Trade Value

Nevertheless, despite his struggles, Wade is still an elite player and along with Kobe Bryant, is still one of the two best shooting guards in the NBA. His game is not limited to just scoring either; Flash is a do-it-all kind of guy, especially when his jump shot is not going down as he did in Game 3 of the first-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks, in which he finished with just four points and on 1-of-12 shooting, although he did end up with 11 assists, nine rebounds and five steals, along with two blocks.

Last season he continued to put up good numbers as he averaged 21.2 points, five rebounds, five assists and nearly two steals per game, showing that he is still a superstar. And in the NBA Finals, he seemed to have some sort of 2006 Finals flashback as he put in a few vintage performances.

Was it a sign of future things to come, a quick flash of what he used to do or a reminder of what he still can do? Who knows, but one thing is for sure: The 2013-14 season will be a big one for Wade and the rest of the Big three.

Whether or not he remains a member of the Miami Heat, Dwyane Wade has been nothing but a loyal servant to HeatNation for more than a decade and has given the organization three championships along with some truly spectacular moments of magic. Therefore, trading him would seem somewhat cruel and ruthless, but alas, that is the nature of the business.