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A couple weeks ago, I wrote about the mysterious “secret motivation” of LeBron James. If you’ll remember, James sparked curiosity by claiming he was driven to win a title with the Cleveland Cavaliers due to some other inspiration, one which he wouldn’t divulge unless the team won it all. Word also had it Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade knew what the motivation was.
Feeling curious, it left me wondering if Wade was involved in this, and if maybe the motivation was that if James won a championship Wade would join him in Cleveland in the offseason.
It definitely seemed lofty. Though Wade is reportedly unhappy with how the Heat are treating his contract issues at the moment, he certainly wouldn’t have a better money situation in Cleveland. Pressed up against the cap, the Cavs already had a hefty list of their own players they need to worry about retaining. With this in mind, they clearly can’t afford to throw Wade the money he’s seeking.
So, while it was fun to imagine the idea of James leaving Miami, then luring their cornerstone player away the very next summer, in the end it just wasn’t too likely.
Of course, this was before all the curious things starting happening with Wade.
Speaking with ABC’s pre-game crew during the NBA Finals, Wade used the phrase “when I was in Miami.” This alone had Heat fans freaking out. Was he speaking in past tense because he already knew his time with the team was done? Or was it just a simple brain-fart?
For a while, it seemed like the latter. However, more alarms went off today, as a picture of Wade’s father wearing a Cavaliers shirt started spreading around social media. Wade hasn’t played a minute for Cleveland, so why would his dad be wearing a shirt supporting the team?
It’s all very peculiar, I’ll give you that. It’s the same kind of kooky storylines that began surfacing in the weeks before James became a free agent and returned to the Cavs last summer. However, anyone thinking Wade’s dad is essentially breaking the news of his son fleeing for the north coast should probably take a deep breath and realize the situation is still pretty unlikely.
Despite his slip-of-the-tongue moments and headline-worthy fashion choices of his dad, remember the reason why Wade is upset with Miami. Consistently asked to take less money so the team can afford to woo bigger names in free agency, Wade feels it’s finally time for his big payday. However, the Heat apparently feel otherwise. It’s this financial issue that has him threatening to opt out and leave town.
As mentioned, he won’t find anything in terms of extra money in Cleveland. The Cavs are already working on qualifying offers for Tristan Thomspon, Iman Shumpert and Matthew Dellavedova. They have to keep the possible opt outs of Kevin Love, LeBron James and J.R. Smith on the agenda as well. Since NBA teams are only allowed to go over the cap for their own players, the aforementioned members of the team are going to take top priority.
When Cleveland finally works through all of these players, they won’t have too much to offer if they make a run at Wade. He’s upset with the Heat because he wants a bigger contract than they’re willing to give him. Heading to the Cavs for the mid-level exception or the veteran minimum – essentially all they could provide – isn’t exactly coming out on top.
Additionally, you can’t help but think this is all some sort of strategic posturing by Wade and his camp. As we now know, it doesn’t take a lot to grab headlines when it comes to NBA free agency. All it took was Wade using past tense and his dad wearing another team’s shirt and all hell broke loose.
At the same time, you know the Heat are seeing this, too. They could very easily view it as Wade trying to scare them, spreading hints here and there about his desire to play for another club in attempts to make them realize he’s not joking around. You’re not willing to pay me? Fine, I’ll set Twitter ablaze by making people think I’m going to the Cavs.
It’s because of this I still have a hard time buying into the Wade-to-Cleveland rumors. Yes, it’s all very strange, and may end up actually resulting in something. At the same time, the Cavs are cash-strapped and Miami isn’t stupid. For now, I would take any and all bits about Wade heading to Cleveland with a grain of salt.
Casey Drottar is the Cleveland Beat Writer for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter or “Like” him on Facebook
