Dwyane Wade is set to meet with the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday and reportedly will be offered somewhere north of $50 million for two years. According to one Nuggets legend, this proposed deal is all about selling tickets for the Nuggets and making a lump some of cash for Wade.
“I think you have to give your fans reason to keep coming down and buying tickets,” said former Nuggets coach and NBA Hall of Famer Dan Issel on The Final Verdict with Notaro and Jacobs on Mile High Sports AM 1340 | FM 104.7. “I think in the short term that’s probably what Dwyane would do.”
Another reason Wade is being offered this ridiculous amount of money is because the new NBA salary cap rules. The Nuggets have to spend 90 percent of the salary cap on player salaries, so with all these young players and middle-tier veterans on the roster they don’t have anyone to dump a large chunk of money on.
“The reason the Nuggets are in a position right now to give Dwayne Wade $25 million is because they have to spend 90 percent of the salary cap,” said Issel. “Right now they have to spend, if my math is right, $18 or $20 million to get to the floor.”
Wade is 34 and has already won three NBA championships; he is apparently not looking to join a championship team after discussions with the Cavs dried up, so it seems like this deal is only being entertained by both parties to make boat loads of money.
Issel has been on both sides of the equation and offers a unique perspective on the situation. Listen to the full discussion, including Issel’s take on today’s NBA and Kentucky basketball, in the podcast below
Catch The Final Verdict with Renaud Notaro and Dan Jacobs Monday through Thursday from 6p-8p on Mile High Sports AM 1340 | FM 104.7 or stream live any time for the best local coverage of Colorado sports from Denver’s biggest sports talk lineup.