Consequences of Wade and Bosh in Miami
In the first move in the most colossal NBA Free Agency of all time, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade have been confirmed to be joining forces for the Miami Heat. Earlier speculations abound as to whether the two would be mediating or even respectively teaming up with superstar LeBron James. There had also been reports that all three would play together, forging something of an NBA all-star team, designed to take out Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.
ESPN’s Chris Broussard and Shelly Smith reported that the official announcement will come today. Both are expected to state their intentions and could sign deals as early as tomorrow.
For signing anew with his home team, Wade is eligible to sign a six-year, $120 million dollar deal. Reports suggest Bosh wants the same, but needs the Toronto Raptors to agree to a sign-and-trade with the Heat, since the Heat themselves could not match the amount. Both franchises have yet to discuss the terms, according to Ira Winderman. At the same time, one can safely speculate on a sign-and-trade for Bosh, as that would give the Raptors trade benefits.
Even if Toronto does not cooperate, Bosh is reported to sign with Miami. Without a sign-and-trade, he can sign a five-year deal that will be worth almost $30 million less over the course of the contract, or roughly a fifth of what he would get with a Toronto sign-and-trade.
According to Windeman, the move “blindsided Toronto,” which hardly speaks well of Toronto considering moves of this order were swirling around news reports for over a week.
The question of whether LeBron James will be joining them is still unclear, but with the news of the reunion of Bosh and Wade teaming up, the possibility of a real triad has gained more momentum. There had been concerned about whether James would be content joining, whether there would be too much ego on the court, and whether James would be happy going to Wade’s city.
Yet the possibility remains intact. Winderman and others confirmed that it was still up in the air. However, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports posted on Twitter earlier that a team official who pitched LeBron is claiming it is now down to Cleveland and Miami.
LeBron is expected to give his decision in a live ESPN special on Thursday evening.
In order to acquire James, Miami would need help from Toronto to have the cap space.
The Toronto Raptors have two options: sign-and-trade Bosh and receive the benefits of a trade deal, or let him go without a renewed contract and working with the acquired cap space. They began having concerns of Bosh signing Tuesday.
Critics are reporting that the team of Bosh and Wade would be the best critical move for Miami since Wade and Shaquille O’Neal. Bosh may be an excellent fit due to the diversity of his game—he can score from the post, as well as in several other spots on the floor. He can also hit the mid-range jumper, and make rebounds. On the other hand, Bosh has spent years building a reputation with the Raptors, and become their main stake after Vince Carter. It is unclear how he would deal with retorting back to a role of subordination, and whether that would even be a possibility at this point.
Recently Bosh posted on his twitter: "Good night everyone! There's still a lot on my mind. Hopefully something to help me will come in my dreams one of these nights,” indicating that much of the decision still needed to be fleshed out. But analysts alike agree that Bosh will likely do what allows him to get the most for his buck—in other words try to get the sign-and-trade out of Toronto if possible.
Tags: