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Dwyane Wade is officially back with the Miami Heat, and he decided to make the announcement in the coolest way possible.
Heat fans are still mostly livid over LeBron James’ departure. Especially with the way he did it — via an article in Sports Illustrated that never mentions Heat fans, and then with taking to social media with the hashtag #LaFamilia.
Since Friday, that hashtag has come to mean, more than anything, LeBron’s close friends and entourage and not Cavaliers fans or even his own immediate family. It’s a hashtag that has fueled resentment and anger throughout Miami Heat Nation, given the recent reports that it was LeBron’s “familia” that staged his departure from the get-go.
But on Tuesday afternoon, Wade took to Instagram and introduced his own hashtag: #HeatLifer
See also: Six Reasons the Miami Heat Will Thrive Without LeBron James
In a time when emotions are still raw and the pain of rejection still real, the Heat’s greatest icon of all has stepped up and, in one fell swoop, obliterated all of LeBron James’ contrived social media mores by putting out something real and from the heart. Not just with an Instagram post but with his actions.
“Home Is Where The Heart Is,” Wade wrote. “My Home, My City, My House.”
Boom.
Moreover, while terms of his new contract have yet to be released, it’s clear that Wade is taking about $5 million less than what he would’ve gotten from the two-year, $42 million he opted out of to allow the team the flexibility to re-sign LeBron and other free agents.
While the money he’ll make now will be over the length of the contract, Wade’s constant sacrifice for the good of the team is something that can’t be stressed enough.
See also: Five Ways to Get Over Your LeBron Heartbreak (According to a Clevelander)
This isn’t the first time he’s sacrificed money for the the team, nor the first time he’s set aside his own ego for it.
#HeatLifer indeed.
And the love from fans has begun to pour in.
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