Cleveland Cavaliers forward Dean Wade reportedly is making some serious progress from the knee injury that sidelined him during the 2023-24 season.
According to Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor, Wade no longer is dealing with pain in his knee and began doing full workouts in mid-June.
#Cavs Dean Wade returned to Cleveland recently and is conducting full on-court workouts. No pain in the knee that kept him out down the stretch and much of the playoffs, sources tell @clevelanddotcom. Wade took a few weeks off & started full workouts in mid-June, sources say.
— Chris Fedor (@ChrisFedor) July 8, 2024
This is a great sign for the Cavs, as Wade is an integral piece in their rotation because of his ability to stretch the floor from the forward spot. In 54 games in the 2023-24 season, Wade averaged 5.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game while shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from beyond the arc.
For his career, Wade averages 5.2 points per game on 37.1 percent shooting from deep. He’s played at least 19.2 minutes per game over the last four seasons with the Cavs.
During the 2023-24 season, Wade’s injury knocked him out of the lineup for most of March, and he did not return until Game 3 of the second round of the playoffs against the Boston Celtics.
The veteran forward ended up playing in the final three games of the series (all losses for Cleveland) and averaged 3.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. Wade played a small role, but he was needed with Donovan Mitchell (calf) going down in the series and Jarrett Allen missing the entire series due to a rib injury.
Wade is a solid player to have alongside Allen or Evan Mobley in the frontcourt because of his long-range shooting, and he gives the Cavs another option at the forward spot outside of Georges Niang, who struggled shooting the ball in the playoffs (13.0 percent from 3 in 10 games) in the 2023-24 season.
After going undrafted, Wade has earned his way into the NBA, starting in the 2019-20 season when he appeared in 12 games for Cleveland. His hard work paid off, as the Cavs signed him to a three-year, $18.5 million deal ahead of the 2022-23 season. Wade now has two seasons left on that deal.
If he can remain healthy ahead of the start of the 2024-25 regular season, it’s likely Wade will have a role in Cleveland’s rotation. However, with J.B. Bickerstaff out as the Cavs’ head coach, it’ll be interesting to see how new head coach Kenny Atkinson plans on using Wade in his schemes.
