With Dwyane Wade recently stating that his free agency decision wasn't entirely about basketball, speculation began to grow that Chicago might be Wade's team of choice. Wade is in the middle of a divorce, and both the court procedings and his children are in Chicago. Early this morning, Wade went back to Miami to think about his decision, but I'm starting to worry that he has already made it.
It is very interesting to me that when free agency began it was a near certainty Wade would be re-signing with the Heat and he was supposed to recruit other players to join him. Now, however, it doesn't appear as such a sure thing. Having already been "intrigued" by New York and meeting twice with Chicago, it seems Wade might just be deciding which city he wants to leave for.
Upon hearing Wade saying he was interested in the Knicks, I immediately thought he was just being to New York fans, a way of letting them down softly when he went back to Miami. But when he sat down with Chicago, and came out of the meeting apparently even more intrigued by the Bulls offer, I kind of started to wonder if D-Wade might be seriously planning a return to his original home. After the second meeting, as much as I hate to say it, I'm starting to feel like Wade may be on his way out of Miami.
The Heat started planning late last night to have fans greet Wade upon his return to Miami at the Miami International Airport this morning to show how much the city loves him. But after advertising and trying to get to fans via Facebook and twitter, the team apparently forgot to make certain Wade hadn't changed plans. The group of fans and team officials waiting for his arrival didn't even catch a glimpse of the All-Star guard, however, as he flew in on a different flight and had already left the airport by the time he was made aware of the gathering.
While I orginally thought that the event was just poorly planned by the Heat, I eventually had a depressing realization: Wade might not have wanted to see the fans gathering because he already knows his plans and they are to leave. It could just be a complete coincedence, but he didn't turn around to come back to see the crowd and you have to wonder if he wasn't aware of the gathering beforehand. Wade does have a Facebook and Twitter account, there's a decent chance he knew their would be people awiting him.
If he does indeed leave Miami to play with the Bulls, the Heat will be left with almost nothing to offer other free agents to entice them to sign. While the weather and night life is amazing in Miami, that probably won't be a big enough factor to bring in a superstar if Wade departs. According to reports, the only talks Wade has had with the team have been informal and he won't actually meet with the Heat until later this week. Pat Riley is going to have to make perhaps his biggest pitch of the postseason to keep Wade in Miami.
