The Miami Heat find themselves in a rebuilding stage as Pat Riley and company move on from the Dwyane Wade era. Wade opted to join the Chicago Bulls ahead, leaving the only franchise he has played for the past 13 years.
Wade’s exit could be the final piece of the original “Big Three” the Heat assembled back in 2010. LeBron James is now with the Cleveland Cavaliers while the future of Chris Bosh remains unknown due to health reasons. Bosh could be forced to retire despite his willingness to play on.
New Era starts
The Miami Heat now finds itself in the rebuilding stage. Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside lead the pack of new Heat players with lots of positions to fill.
Veteran banger Udonis Haslem has re-signed with the Heat per the Miami Herald. Haslem reportedly agreed to a one-year contract worth $4 million and is the lone remnant of the team’s three NBA championship runs.
New Heat players
With a roster to fill up, the Miami Heat have already booked Derrick Williams who last played with the New York Knicks according to the Miami Herald. Two more faces are likely to come soon with reports that Wayne Ellington and James Johnson will be signed up next.
Tyler Johnson being kept
Another promising player could be staying put as well in Tyler Johnson. After being dangled a $50 million offer sheet, the Heat will reportedly match the offer to keep the restricted free agent. The final decision on Johnson’s fate will likely be known in the next couple of hours.
The Heat find themselves in an uncanny predicament. Wade is a big loss for the franchise who was in a similar situation last year. While it seemed the outcome would be the same, Wade finally jumped ship to get his proper due. But the all star guard believes that change could be good for both him and his former team.
"I'm not sitting here saying that change will not be good for the Miami Heat. We might not see it immediately. We might see it later," Wade said via ESPN.