MIAMI — Dwyane Wade will remain in Miami on one condition. He wants the Heat to become a championship contender again, the quicker the better.
Otherwise, he might need moving trucks next summer.
The reigning NBA scoring champion, who can opt out of his Heat contract after the 2009-10 season, said Monday that simply getting to the playoffs “is not enough” to satisfy him anymore, and that his long-term commitment to Miami hinges entirely on the franchise getting back into the mix for the title trophy he hoisted just three years ago.
“I’m going to listen. I owe the Miami Heat that much. I’m going to listen to what they have to say and I’m going to think about it,” Wade told The Associated Press. “But right now, the way I feel, I want to make sure that we’re on track to where I want us to be on track to before I sign back.”
Wade made clear that he would like to stay with the Heat, reiterating something he’s said countless times in recent months. There’s no acrimony between the 2006 NBA finals MVP and Heat president Pat Riley either, and Wade said that the jump Miami made this past season — from 15 wins and the league’s worst record in 2007-08, to 43 wins and the No. 5 seed in the East in 2008-09 — was thrilling.
“I’m good with that,” Wade said, “for one year.”
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