Dwyane Wade has been the talk of the basketball world over the last few days, for both the right and the wrong reasons. On one hand, he became the first player in Miami Heat history to get his statue outside the team’s arena.

On the other hand, the statue became the target of memes due to the lack of similarity with Wade. Some have gone as far as to call it the worst statue in sports history.

Wade does not seem to care though and is laughing along with the memes, happy with the magnitude of the honor that was bestowed upon him.

If Jimmy Butler can lead this Heat team to an NBA Championship, he might get his statue outside the Kaseya Center one day. The chances of that happening are getting narrower by the day though.

Butler has come close on two occasions, carrying the Heat to two NBA Finals, against all odds and expectations. But both times, they came up short on the biggest stage, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets.

Now, 35 years of age, there are doubts whether Butler is still capable of taking the Heat to the NBA Finals.

Not only is his age a factor but his long injury history. Many believe that that is the reason the Heat did not make any significant ‘win now’ moves this summer, as they are already moving on to the Bam Adebayo era.

Wade has an honest message for Butler, regarding what his former Chicago Bulls teammate needs to do at this point in his career.

According to Anthony Chiang in the Wade said: “Roles change and you got to find that role and you got to find that comfort.

“So right now, we’re watching a team finding themselves and Jimmy has to find his role on this year’s team. It’s not the same as the first year when he got here. The personnel is different. He’s different, he’s older, as well. Miles are adding up. But he’s smarter as a basketball player than he’s ever been.”

Butler’s long-term future with the Heat remains in doubt though. It is expected that he will opt out of his player option to become a free agent next summer.

Could that lead to the Heat exploring trade options surrounding Butler rather than risk seeing him walk out for nothing next year? He has been linked with the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and Brooklyn Nets in recent times.