In an interview on Friday with TNT analyst David Aldridge, Heat president Pat Riley reflected on Dwyane Wade and his 13-year career in Miami. Since announcing his decision to sign with the Chicago Bulls, Wade has done much of the talking, revealing that he hasn't spoken with Riley since leaving for Chi-Town. Prior to D-Wade's return to the American Airlines Arena, Pat not only admitted to crying when thinking about him, but revealed his only regret when looking back at Wade's tenure with the Heat.
"We’ll always love him. We’ll never forget him," Riley said, when discussing his and Heat owner Micky Arison's feelings towards Wade. "I can listen to ‘The Way We Were’ by Willie Hutch and I’ll come to tears just thinking about him. Or I can listen to 'Always Together' by the Dells. See, only you and I know these songs. And I’ll come to tears thinking about him."
When asked if Wade's jersey will be going up in the rafters, Pat acknowledged that they would need to wait until after he retired, but added, "We’re saving a spot for him up there." As for that one regret, Riley admits that after LeBron James left for Cleveland in 2014, the Heat should've given Chris Boshand D-Wade a max contract. "If we ever had to do it again—and Andy (Elisburg, the Heat’s Senior VP of Basketball Operations and General Manager) bang our fists on the table—if we ever had to do it again, when LeBron left (in 2014), we should have given Chris the max, and Dwyane the max. And that was it," Riley said. "Instead of trying to say to Dwayne, I want to get another guy for you, but you have to sacrifice. And that was wrong. I should have given him—we should have given him—that then."
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