5. Shrinking Championship Window
This, more than anything else, would be the most likely indicator of Wade opting out to come to Cleveland.
Unlike James, Wade did not enter the 2003 NBA Draft as a fresh-faced high school graduate. Instead, Wade put in a full three years of academic and basketball work at Marquette University, making him a 22-year-old rookie for the Heat in the 2003-04 season, as opposed to James being just 18 in his first NBA season with the Cavs.
Because of this, Wade is now entering his 14th NBA season and is going to be 35-years-old next year. That puts him several years past his physical prime, and his window to compete for and win championships is shrinking rapidly.
With that in mind, should Wade choose to leave Miami, he would likely only be interested in heading to a franchise that already has the pieces to compete for a spot in the NBA Finals. There is no better place for that than where the current champions are, in Cleveland.
There are also some health issues that have surfaced for Wade over the past few seasons. While he was able to largely return to form by playing in 74 games last season, that total was his highest mark since the 2010-11 season where he played 76 games. It was also James’ first season in Miami.
The following year, plagued by knee issues, Wade played just 49 games and largely allowed James to do much of the heavy lifting during the regular season. That trend continued for the next couple years, as Wade failed to reach 70 games played each of the next two seasons.
Should those injury issues flare up, Wade would have no pressure to play through the injuries, as he could rely on the play of James and a young, dynamic scoring point guard in Irving, who has proven an ability to take over games when other stars are not available.
And then, when Wade is ready to return, he could seamlessly transition back into the play as he has done so many times throughout his career.
Both James and Wade have proven that they can win without each other, as Wade won in 2006 while James more recently delivered Cleveland a title in 2016.
At this point in their careers, neither player has anything left to prove to anybody, so a reunion would arise solely from a desire to play together as best friends and brothers, which is something that both players clearly want and deserve.
It would also allow two Hall-of-Fame players the ability to grab a few more rings before hanging up their laces for good. If Wade wants to compete for those rings, working his way onto the Cavs is really the only option to achieve that success.
Take all these things together, and it’s difficult to see Wade wanting to put on any other jersey besides one with Cleveland on the front next season.
