Free agent Dwyane Wade has committed to joining the Chicago Bulls.
"This was not an easy decision, but I feel I have made the right choice,'' Wade said in a letter released to the Associated Press.
"He's home," one source close to Wade said of the Chicago native.
"Watching the Bulls growing up inspired me at an early age to pursue my dream of becoming a basketball player," Wade said in his letter. "My most treasured memories were watching my dad play basketball on the courts of Fermi Elementary School and developing my game at the Blue Island Recreation Center. I have never forgotten where I came from and I am thankful to have an opportunity to play for the team that first fueled my love of the game."
Wade has agreed to a two-year deal worth $47 million, according to the AP. TheMiami Heat had a two-year, $40 million offer on the table for Wade.
Extreme acrimony had been building between Wade and the Heat over the last week. Wade met with Heat owner Micky Arison in New York on Monday.
"Miami dared a very proud man to go home, and that man's best friend [LeBron James] just won a title by going home," a source very close to the process told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.
After Wade and the Heat failed to reach an accord on Monday, the Bulls picked up their intensity in attempting to trade players, sources said. Wade and the Bulls entered serious negotiations late Wednesday after he held free agent meetings during the day with several teams, sources said. The Bulls had ramped up efforts to clear needed space to give Wade the multiyear deal he has been seeking.
The Bulls had been gaining momentum on landing Wade and believed they had a trade partner willing to take on Jose Calderon to clear salary-cap space, sources told ESPN.com.
The Los Angeles Lakers have swooped in ahead of the Brooklyn Nets to acquire Calderon, according to league sources.
Calderon and two future second-round picks are headed to Los Angeles in exchange for a player to be named later.
With Calderon seemingly headed to the Nets, sources say Chicago informed Calderon's representatives that they are trading him to L.A. instead.
The Bulls have also agreed to a trade that will send Mike Dunleavy to theCleveland Cavaliers, according to sources.
James has long coveted Dunleavy as a teammate, a source said.
Calderon became a focus of trade talks as he is in the final year of a contract that pays him $7.7 million.
With the Bulls sending Calderon to the Lakers, according to sources, Chicago clears the way to create more than $20 million and beat the Heat's offer.
Source: ESPN
