Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade just re-signed with the team on a one-year, $20 million contract. And despite seeing his playing time decrease on each of the past two seasons, the 33-year-old guard doesn’t seem ready to retire at any point soon.
When asked by a fan on Twitter how much longer he plans to be in the league, Wade responded:
When I can no longer play..averaging 20 plus a game at 33 yrs old.. I think I'll stay around for alil while.. https://t.co/jZQblxjKAU
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) July 6, 2015
Wade did average 21.5 points and nearly five assists per game last season. He also averaged the fewest minutes per game (31.8) in his Hall of Fame-worthy 12-year career. In an attempt to keep him fresh, the Heat sat Wade throughout the season. In total, he missed 20 of the team’s 82 regular season games.
The wear and tear that comes with 781 regular season games and 152 playoff games has obviously impacted Wade over the past couple years. This doesn’t even take into account the multitude of injuries he’s suffered through during that span.
It’s not a secret that the 11-time All-Star opted out of his contract earlier this summer in order to sign a long-term deal—something that just didn’t seem plausible based on his age in today’s market. Once Wade returned to Miami on a one-year deal, it became obvious a long-term contract really wasn’t on the table.
It will be interesting to see how Wade performs in 2015-16, and what that means for his future beyond next year. After all, he’s slated to become a free agent for the third consecutive summer.
Photo: USA Today Sports