The past few seasons, Dwyane Wade's knee issues have escalated. Now, the guard is having to sit back-to-back games and is finding his minutes limited more times than not. His absence is certainly felt. On Thursday, the Miami Heat lost to the Chicago Bulls after Carlos Boozer and company overwhelmed the champs without Wade on the court. The team is now left to negotiate trade deals in hopes of getting backcourt help.
ESPN.com is reporting Miami has started trade negotiations with other teams in order to get help for when Wade is not able to play. Last season, Mike Miller was the rotation man for when Wade had an off day. He proved an effective substitute, averaging 10 points and five rebounds while shooting 49 percent as a starter. The issue is the Miller is no longer on the team after getting released in order to save cap space.
This season, head coach Erik Spoelstra has been left to throw darts a board to determine who will get the start. Ray Allen started on Thursday for the first time in his Miami career. That marks the third player Spoelstra has started in place of Wade. Both James Jones and Rodger Mason Jr. have also taken a stab at the spot, but the Heat are 2-3 without Wade which will not work down the stretch of the season.
Miami stocked up on big men in the offseason that might garner some value in a trade. The first player on the chopping block could be Joel Anthony as Heat beat writer Ira Winderman says the team will trade a frontcourt player for a backcourt player.
Anthony may or may not get something in return. The 31-year-old is a defensive star. His contract is not terrible as he is set to make $3.8 million this season with a $3.8 million option for 2014-15. With Greg Oden developing, the Heat could afford to lose a player like Anthony. It would not be hard to find an upgrade from the options they have tried now, so the team could get what they are looking for in a trade.
The underlying issue is whether or not those troublesome knees will impact the futures of LeBron James and Chris Bosh. If Wade is having this many issues now, what will next season look like? Is it worth sticking around to find out? The two stars will have to answer this as Miami looks to make a deal.