The Miami Heat have had a couple of bad seasons and are trying to get back on track with big free agent signings. After the departure of the Big 3, the Heat haven't had much success in the postseason. To make things worse, Pat Riley has given out some really bad contracts to several players, and it will be hard to recover from that. However, Miami could get rid of some of those contracts through trades and land a big-name player this summer.
Dwyane Wade, who has retired from the league, has recently hinted at the return to basketball. According to the best player in Heat history, he would only return to Miami, and not join forces with LeBron James in Los Angeles.
The three-time NBA champion has also tried to recruit Jimmy Butler, and it will be interesting to see how that works out.
Wade's comments and recruitment
Dwyane Wade hinted at his return to the NBA on his Twitter profile. One of his followers said how he should come out of retirement and join his good friend LeBron James in Los Angeles. However, the former Heat guard has replied to him, "killing" that rumor and saying that he could come out of retirement only for the Miami Heat.
Wade, who averaged 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game in his last season, has tried to recruit Jimmy Butler to go to South Beach. Butler is a close friend of Wade and the two of them have played together for the Chicago Bulls.
Butler has been on Miami's radar, but in order to sign him, the Heat will most likely have to give up some of their young players, such as Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson, and Bam Adebayo.
Butler has recently declined his $19.8 million Player Option and is now an unrestricted free agent. The Philadelphia Sixers, his last team, are interested in bringing him back.
However, Butler has drawn a lot of interest from a few other teams in the NBA, and it is currently unclear what team he will sign with this summer.
Butler's response
Jimmy Butler has responded to Dwyane Wade's tweet with "hey big head." While this doesn't mean anything in terms of Butler's future in the NBA, it does show that the two players are close and that Wade could have an impact on Butler's free agency decision this year.
hey big head. https://t.co/iYDvs2nos2
— Jimmy Butler (@JimmyButler) June 29, 2019
Butler is a great two-way player who would turn the Miami Heat into one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. With the retirement of Dwyane Wade, Miami now needs another leader, and Jimmy Butler could be that. He averaged 18.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.8 steals, and 0.5 blocks with the Sixers last season. However, it is important to note that he will turn 30 in September, and in order to get him, the Miami Heat would most likely have to offer him a long-term contract.