Wade: 'I don't need to ring-chase, but I can'

Dwyane Wade faces a decision this summer on whether to opt out of his contract with his hometown Chicago Bulls. If he were to do so, conventional wisdom would state that he'd want to join a title contender, something the Bulls currently aren't.

Yet as the team cleared out their lockers Saturday, Wade wasn't sure which direction he is going to lean.

"I don't need to ring chase, but I can," Wade said, according to the Chicago Tribune's K.C. Johnson. "It's a great luxury to have."

Wade's first season in Chicago was the definition of mediocrity for the Bulls. An oddly-constructed roster, calls for a total rebuild, and then a positive playoff showing - until Rajon Rondo's injury - made them one of the most up-and-down teams in the NBA.

In January, Wade shied away from the rebuild talk, saying he "would be a liar to say that I want to play on a team with all 21-year-olds."

That view may have changed for Wade, who will turn 36 next season.

"I can be a part of passing down my knowledge to younger players," he said Saturday. "It's either way. Whatever I decide, I'm going to embrace whatever role I have on a team. That's sometimes being the second option. Sometimes I'm going to be the first. And sometimes this season, I had to be the third or fourth. It all changes, and you want to be the best at whatever role is presented to you."

Wade has said that he'd only want to stay with the Bulls if Jimmy Butler is on the team. Butler wants to remain in Chicago, and any trade involving him would clearly signal a full-scale rebuild.

"I'm in a very good situation," Wade said. "And I have a lot of money to decide if I want to take it or not. It's not a bad thing because I worked my butt off for it over my career, so no rush in my mind. I’ve got at least a month before my mind starts going there. I'm just going to get away and let my hair grow a little bit, get a tan."