One of the things that is quite popular in the NBA while everyone is waiting for the preseason to begin is projecting the future. One popular subject of debate is Dwyane Wade and his future with the Miami Heat, considering his very expensive player option that goes into effect in a year from now and the health issues that seem to be plaguing him more and more recently.

The two popular subjects at the moment regarding Wade? The chances of him opting out of his contract with the Miami Heat in the 2014 summer, and his work with trainer Tim Grover to solve his knee issues, with Grover famously repeating that he doesn’t train his players to be as good as new, but to better than they ever were.

Wade’s contract runs for the next three seasons. He makes $18.6 million next season, but then has a player option for the next two seasons, worth a combined $41.8 million. If Wade wouldn’t have been so blatantly suffering from knee problems during last season and especially in the playoffs, it would have been an actual question if he was going to stick around for two more seasons.

LeBron James has the chance to opt out of the deal, and it’s a lot harder to figure out what he’s going to do. He has won four of the last five MVP award, hasn’t had any injury problems that are likely to slow him down, and there will be no problem for him getting another maximum contract from the teams trying to create enough space for the summer of 2014.

Wade? He won’t be getting that kind of deal, but for some reason, he’s making it sound like he’s leaving all of his options open. As if he’s confident enough he can play like the Wade from two seasons ago, and that the knee problems that have been hurting him, keeping him out of 13 games last season and severely limiting his ability in some of the games.

But there’s no way Wade leaves the Heat for the next three years unless he feels the ship will be falling apart with James abandoning ship as well. It’s just too much money to pass up, not to mention the loyalty to Miami, where he’s been a star player since entering the league in 2003. He might want to think that he’s still one of the biggest stars in the league and one of the best players as well. In name, he still is one of the more recognizable players in the sport, but no longer someone who deserves that kind of money, which is why he’ll take the offer that’s on the table.