Tag: dwyane wade

Dwyane Wade joins ownership group of the Utah Jazz

STATEMENT FROM THE UTAH JAZZ

The Utah Jazz announced that Dwyane Wade, 13-time NBA All-Star and three-time NBA champion, will join its ownership group. The ownership group is the youngest in the NBA and is led by technology entrepreneur and Qualtrics founder Ryan Smith and his wife Ashley who acquired a majority interest in the Utah Jazz in late 2020. The small ownership group has previously consisted of tech leaders, including legendary investor and Accel partner Ryan Sweeney, and Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes in addition to the Miller family. Today they announced the addition of Wade.

“Dwyane is not only a basketball legend, he is also a great leader, businessman, and human being,” said Ryan Smith, NBA governor of the Utah Jazz. “As we continue to build on the incredible legacy of the Utah Jazz franchise, we are excited to add Dwyane’s experience and expertise to the equation. Utah is an amazing place and I couldn’t be more thrilled about the future of the franchise and the future of this state. Dwyane’s influence will be important to both.”

Smith and Wade have known each other for several years and have engaged in numerous conversations about working together in various business and investment capacities. Shortly after Smith acquired the Utah Jazz, he and Wade began conversations about Wade joining the Utah Jazz ownership group and Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), the first of many joint business ventures.

“Partnering with Ryan and the Utah Jazz is the perfect fit as we share the same vision and values,” said Dwyane Wade. “Not only is this group focused on building a championship franchise, they are also committed to using their platform to do good and actively create a more inclusive, equitable world. We share a lot of the same goals and are trying to go the same places in life. As a businessman, entrepreneur, and investor, I bring a lot to this partnership outside of my basketball experience. I’m excited to help take the Utah Jazz to the next level. I am always looking for new opportunities to grow and challenge myself. I’ve always done things my own way and this is the next step in my journey. As a kid from the south side of Chicago, this partnership goes beyond my wildest dreams of playing basketball, and I hope to inspire the next generation of dreamers.”

Dwyane Wade sees Pat Riley sticking around with Miami Heat

Pat Riley has a long, storied history in basketball. He’s a legend in many respects, including via his current status with the Heat. Here’s retired star Dwyane Wade talking about Riley, as per the Sun Sentinel:

Dwyane Wade said Wednesday that he envisions Pat Riley continuing on with the work he has done as Miami Heat president no matter the result of these NBA playoffs, and that even if the job became vacant, it is not one he would pursue.

Asked if championship success could bring the Riley era to a close after a quarter century of stewardship of the Heat, Wade said on 790-The Ticket that he sees the 75-old-icon as game for more.

“I don’t think so,” Wade said of Riley moving on after a potential fourth championship under his Heat watch this postseason. “I think we’re going to have to roll him out.

“Look, I’ve heard him say a lot of things over my time. He said he wanted to build a team to get back to the championship. I see Riley just being there. That doesn’t mean someone else won’t eventually come in.”

It’s clear that Riley has a good thing going with this current Heat squad, who are currently up 2-1 on the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. They’re clearly a championship contender right now, and no matter what happens in the remainder of these playoffs there is no reason for Riley or anyone up top in the organization to think about going anywhere.

Dwyane Wade keeping a close eye on Miami Heat playoff run

Former Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade is an observer now spoke with the Miami Herald on the team, who stepped up and convincingly eliminated the Bucks to reach the Eastern Conference Finals.

Future Hall of Fame guard Dwyane Wade, who retired at the end of last season and already had his No. 3 Heat jersey retired by the organization, is watching Miami’s playoff run closely but from afar in his home in the Los Angeles area.

“Even though I played for this organization and we’ve done some incredible things and I know these guys, I’m just a fan,” Wade said during an interview with the Miami Herald. “I watch from afar and I’m coaching like they can hear me. I’m screaming at them like they can hear me and I’m texting them after the game the same way. Hopefully they can hear me. I’m just a fan that knows the game very well and knows the organization and the team very well who has access to the players. It’s like the ultimate fan.” …

“You still have your connection to the team. It’s still there because it’s immediate,” Wade said. “Being able to be connected with the players and still have that conversation and back-and-forth banter, and giving encouragement or watching the game and giving my inside on what I see. It has been great. As I’ve been told for many years, you enjoy the success of others. I’ve been able to sit back from afar and enjoy the success of the individuals who I know that play for the team now.”

Game 1 of the Heat vs. Boston Celtics Eastern Conference Finals playoff series is tomorrow night.

Dwyane Wade to try his hand as a game show host

Retired NBA players need things to do. Talking about basketball on TV or the radio is an obvious move. But there’s a world of business and entertainment to test the waters of as well. Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting:

Just when you thought Dwyane Wade has done it all, the retired Miami Heat icon offers yet another spin move.

Fashion guru? Check. NBA television analyst? Check. Vintner? Check.

And now? Game show host.

Moving into a role where he will be the one passing out the cash (quite the contrast from the summer of 2016 and that ugly spat with Pat Riley), Wade will executive produce and host an American spinoff of the British game show, The Cube, for WarnerMedia.

The show will feature contestants performing various competitions within a confined cube. And if they need help, the Heat’s all-time leading scorer will be there to assist.

D-Wade continues to show versatility. Just not in the ways people expected.

Dwyane Wade has some advice for NFL quarterback Tua Tagovailoa

Advice on being a pro athlete from retired NBA star Dwyane Wade is worth listening to. Even if it’s for a guy who plays football. Here’s the Miami Herald reporting:

The three-time champion wasn’t drafted to “save the franchise,” but expectations certainly changed after the Heat’s first title in 2006. Throw in the two that he won in the early 2010s and there’s an argument that Tua Tagovailoa should strive to emulate Wade rather than Dan Marino.

But greatness can easily be hindered if you get caught up in the glitz and glamour of Miami. In a recent conversation with ESPN’s Cameron Wolfe, Wade advised 22-year-old quarterback to focus on winning first rather than what the city has to offer.

“Put your head down and go to work. The city of Miami is going to be there, the nightlife is going to be there, the endorsements and all of those things — get your money but don’t let those things take away from your main goal and purpose,” Wade told ESPN. “… Football right now for you in that city is the most important thing. Everything else will come as you win”

Famed Miami nightlife is both a gift and a curse. Depending on how much you take advantage of it, and when you have to wake up for work the next day.

Dwyane Wade out on paternity leave

The Miami Heat are 5-7 this season and while they’re focused on winning now and in the coming seasons as they hope to pivot towards being a contender, the season is also a celebration of the career of Dwyane Wade, who will hang up his sneakers at the end of 2018-19. Of course, D-Wade is still playing, and competing, averaging 14.3 points in 25.7 minutes per game. But after each final buzzer, fans in Miami but also around the league are aware that they’re waving goodbye to Wade, at least as an NBA player. But Wade hasn’t actually been on the court lately. He’s on paternity leave. Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting:

The paternity leave of Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade will extend for another week, with the guard in Los Angeles with his newborn daughter.

After missing the past three games, Wade posted an Instagram photo Sunday that he was in Los Angeles.

Asked last week if Wade would be taking a paternity leave, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, “It’s day to day, but as much time as he needs.”

Wade has missed the past three games, a victory over the San Antonio Spurs and losses to the Indiana Pacers and Washington Wizards.

— Full Article

Dwyane Wade will return for another season

Dwyane Wade isn’t hanging up his sneakers yet. The future Hall of Famer has announced that he’ll play one more NBA season, and will stick with the Miami Heat.

Wade for weeks has stated openly that if he were to return for another NBA season, it would only be for Miami.

Here’s the Miami Herald on Wade’s decision:

This will help the Heat. After all, Wade was the only Heat player to finish last season’s five-game playoff run with a positive plus-minus while leading the team to its only playoff victory in Game 2 in Philadelphia with 28 points in 26 minutes.

But at 36 years old, how much will Wade really help the Heat this season?

“This decision is bigger than the game of basketball,” Wade said in the video posted Sunday night. “This decision don’t have nothing to do with the talent I have in my body. Yeah, I’m not as quick as I used to be. Yeah, I don’t jump as high as I used to. Yeah, I don’t. Yeah, I don’t. Yeah, I don’t.

“But there are things in this game that I have that I can write a book on, that I can still do and I can still accomplish with the right organization, with the right individuals, with the right coach and in the right situation.”

Full article

The Heat won’t be a contender this season, but they’re a solid team, and it’ll be cool to see fans get to applaud D-Wade on his retirement tour.

At the same time, the Heat’s primary need is to figure out their future. So this won’t be an all-about-Wade type of season the way Kobe Bryant’s final Laker season was all about him. The Heat will compete. Wade will contribute to that. And there will be lots of standing ovations in the process.

No Heat playing restrictions for Dwyane Wade

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting on the Heat, who recently welcomed Dwyane Wade back and currently have no plans on restricting his play in regard to back-to-backs:

After being put into a “maintenance” program with the Miami Heat during his previous tenure with the team, Dwyane Wade said no such contingencies have been discussed for this reunion tour.

That had Wade again in the rotation in Wednesday night’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers on the second night of a back-to-back set, after playing 21 minutes in Tuesday night’s loss to the Toronto Raptors.

Wade had been held out of games in four of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ back-to-back sets earlier this season before his recent buyout…

The Heat have three remaining back-to-back sets, with coach Erik Spoelstra saying Wednesday a maintenance plan has not been discussed since Wade’s signing.

“Not right now,” Spoelstra said, “no.”

Full article

Cavs trade Dwyane Wade to Heat

The Cavs have traded Dwyane Wade to the Heat in exchange for a protected 2024 second-round draft pick.

The trade also creates a traded player exception for the Cavaliers in the amount of approximately $1.5 million.

“We would like to thank Dwyane for everything he brought to this team and to the Cleveland community during his time in Northeast Ohio,” said Cavs General Manager Koby Altman. “A definite Hall of Famer when his playing career is complete, his basketball legacy is cemented by how he carries himself both on and off the floor. His work ethic and commitment to the game of basketball with such an illustrious career was greatly respected by his Cavs teammates and everyone in our front office. We wish Dwyane nothing but the best in his return to Miami, where he established himself as one the NBA’s all-time elite players.”

“We feel that Dwyane can help our team in so many ways,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “It is a beautiful moment for us, for the city and for the fans. All of us embrace it in the manner that we want to win and that’s why we brought Dwyane back home. We look forward to having a great end of season run as we fight for the playoffs.”

Wade, a three-time NBA Champion with the HEAT, played 12 seasons in Miami, appearing in 855 regular season games (845 starts) averaging 23.7 points, 5.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds, 1.65 steals and 35.7 minutes while shooting 48.8 percent from the field. The 12-time NBA All-Star is the HEAT’s all-time leader in points (20,221), field goals made (7,325), free throws made (5,185), double-figure scoring efforts (816), assists (4,944), steals (1,414), starts, games played and minutes played (30,560). He also ranks among the HEAT’s all-time leaders in blocks (2nd, 759), total rebounds (4th, 4,126), defensive rebounds (4th, 3,051), offensive rebounds (5th, 1,076), double-doubles (5th, 121), field goal percentage (7th, .488) and three-point field goals made (7th, 386). Additionally, Wade, the 2006 NBA Finals MVP, has appeared in 166 career postseason games (all starts) with the HEAT averaging 22.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.57 steals, 1.00 blocks and 38.4 minutes while shooting 47.7 percent from the field.

Hammons, who was acquired on July 7, 2017, did not appear in a game with the HEAT this season. He did appear in 25 games (14 starts) with Miami’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, this season and averaged 8.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.96 blocks and 20.2 minutes while shooting 53.6 percent from the field.

Cavs sign Dwyane Wade

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed guard Dwyane Wade, Cavaliers General Manager Koby Altman announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

“We’re extremely happy that Dwyane chose to join us in Cleveland and become a core part of helping us achieve success at the highest level,” said Altman. “Dwyane has proven time and time again that he is a leader and competitor of the highest caliber and that his focus is centered on the ultimate goal. The deep commitment and consistency that he has shown to the game as a 12-time NBA All-Star and three-time NBA Champion is remarkable and he’s going to be a difference maker on the court and in the locker room with our team.”

According to ESPN.com, “The deal is worth $2.3 million, league sources told ESPN.”

Wade (6-4, 220) appeared in 60 games (59 starts) with the Chicago Bulls in 2016-17, averaging 18.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.43 steals in 29.9 minutes. He scored at least 20 points on 26 occasions, including 30 points or more five times, and was one of only six players in the Eastern Conference to average at least 18.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.4 steals last season.

More from ESPN.com: “Wade agreed to a contract buyout with the Chicago Bulls on Sunday. Wade, 35, gave back $8 million of his $23.8 million 2017-18 salary to reach a buyout agreement with the Bulls, league sources said.”

The Chicago native was originally selected by the Heat in the 2003 NBA Draft (fifth overall pick) and has gone on to earn 12 NBA All-Star selections (2005-2016), including nine as a starter, as well as MVP honors for the 2010 NBA All-Star Game in Dallas. Wade has reached the playoffs 12 times with three NBA Championships under his belt (2006, 2012, 2013) and was the 2006 Finals MVP. He has also been selected to the All-NBA First Team twice (2009, 2010), All-NBA Second Team three times (2005, 2006, 2011) and All-NBA Third Team three times (2007, 2012, 2013). The 6-4 guard has garnered All-Defensive Second Team honors on three occasions (2005, 2009, 2010) and was an All-Rookie First Team selection in 2004.

Over his 14-year NBA career, Wade has played in 915 regular season games (904 starts) with averages of 23.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.64 steals in 35.4 minutes. Entering the 2017-18 season, he ranks 34th in NBA history for points scored with 21,317. In postseason play, he has averaged 22.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.55 steals and 1.01 blocks in 38.2 minutes over 172 contests (all starts). Wade ranks 11th on the NBA’s all-time postseason scoring list with 3,871 points, and his 174 blocks in the playoffs rank first among guards in NBA history. He spent his first 13 NBA seasons with the Miami Heat and left as the franchise’s leader in scoring (20,221 points), assists (4,944), steals (1,414) and games played (855), while ranking second in blocks (759) and fourth in rebounds (4,126).

Wade has represented his country on the USA Basketball Team two times, winning a gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. Wade is involved in many philanthropic efforts through his Wade’s World Foundation, which has a goal of providing support to various education, health and family service programs, particularly those that benefit underserved communities. He was recently awarded the Mannie Jackson Human Spirit Award at this year’s Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.