Dwyane Wade is officially a member of the Chicago Bulls, and after being the face of the Miami Heat franchise for the past 13 years, he's ready to take a back seat.
When asked at his introductory presser whose team the Bulls are, Wade joked: "I think it's (team owner) Jerry Reinsdorf's team.
"I think, you know, it's funny to be sitting in this seat. I remember when Shaquille O'Neal came to Miami. Coming from the Lakers, three championships, came to Miami, we had no championships at the time. And I remember his press conference. And I was playing in the Olympics at the time, like Jimmy (Butler) is right now. And I remember Shaq said, 'We're not going to go through this all year." He said, 'It's Dwyane Wade's team.'
"So we're not going to go through this all year. This is Jimmy Butler's team. Myself and (Rajon) Rondo are here to bring what we bring as athletes to this team and to this city."
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At 34 and 30, respectively, Wade and Rondo are far more accomplished than Butler, and have championship rings to show for it. However, both of the free-agent acquisitions have accepted supporting roles behind the 6-foot-7 swingman.
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"He's a 26-year-old that can play 40 minutes if coach wants him to, and maybe more," Wade said. "I ain't trying to do all that. And we're going to depend on him a lot. This is a guy who I've known since Marquette University ... that I have a tremendous amount of respect for."
The Chicago native also credits Butler for convincing him to come home.
"And as much as Gar (Forman) and John Paxson and everyone did an amazing job of making sure that this could happen, this wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for Jimmy Butler. Jimmy Butler called me and told me he wanted me here. And that was huge because at the time I didn't know," Wade added.
