National Basketball Association

The 2016-17 Miami Heat: No Dwyane Wade, no problem?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The Miami Heat may have lost a superstar in Dwyane Wade this offseason, but there might be a silver lining after all.

Last night, after the Los Angeles Lakers opened their season at home with a 120-114 win over the Houston Rockets, the words of guard D’Angelo Russell rang through the Internet.

“It’s not about one guy anymore. It’s about sacrificing for the team. Kobe deserved every bit of attention he got in his last year, but there’s freedom in Kobe not being around.”

That’s right.

The Lakers said goodbye to one of the best players in NBA history, and yet, their 20-year-old point guard sees this as a good thing.

It’s not just talk either.

Because although LA will never be the same as it was during the Kobe era, the group that played Thursday night looked pretty impressive. Not one or two guys, here and there. The entire collective unit.

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So what does this have to do with the Miami Heat?

Well a lot, actually.

No, Dwyane Wade did not retire. Instead, after 13 years of being loyal to one team and one team only, he decided it was time for a change. Time to return to his hometown. Time to join the Chicago Bulls.

But he is gone. And he will also go down as one of the top dogs ever to grace this league.

So his absence is felt just as much, if not more so.

However, just like in the case of Kobe and the Lakers, losing Wade may actually open some previously locked doors for the Heat.

In much of the same way.

On Wednesday evening, Miami traveled to Orlando to take on the Magic as their season opener matchup. And both fans and the media could not wait to see how the team would look going into 2016-17. How this new youth movement would hold up.

A 108-96 win on the road, that’s how.

Why?

Sort of because Wade wasn’t there.

After the game ended, there were handfuls of people (who clearly hadn’t watched) asking how the Heat broke 100 points, and who could have scored for them. Was it Hassan Whiteside, posting a record game? Did Goran Dragic help too? But that’s the beauty of it all.

Whiteside did have a nice shooting night: the big man finished with 18 points (as well as 14 rebounds, recording his first double-double of the new season). And Dragic held his own, too: 16 points and 6 assists.

However, they were not alone in their double-digit scoring efforts.

In fact, four more Miami guys posted double-digits: Justise Winslow, Tyler Johnson, James Johnson and Willie Reed. Luke Babbitt finished with 8 points, Dion Waiters had 9 and Rodney McGruder totaled 6. The old “it was a team win,” really held true this time around.

Because everyone was involved. Because everyone had to be involved.

Now this does not mean that Heat Nation should start celebrating Wade’s departure. There are certainly many things about having such a high-caliber athlete on the floor, that simply can’t be replaced. Not to mention the cultural aspect the organization lost, having the face of their franchise leave them behind.

But with Wade around, Dragic wasn’t able to push the pace the way he wanted to. With Wade around, the offensive load didn’t have to be dispersed among a handful of other guys.

So yes, without him, Miami is freer to do things just a little differently.

And with time, they will adapt and turn their new style of play into the norm for Miami Heat basketball.

Wade will forever be missed. And it’s no secret that South Beach would welcome him back with open arms. But until that happens, or in case it never does… Be comforted in knowing that without Wade, a new era of basketball can be born.

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