Dwyane Wade shocked the basketball world when he announced his intention of signing with his hometown Chicago Bulls last night, ending a 13-year reign with the Miami Heat that included three NBA championships.
It was a painful but necessary divorce, considering Wade and the Heat no longer shared the same priorities.
While it’s not believed the city or the team will take big hits financially from Wade’s departure, it would be surprising to see Wade sell his lavish mansion on Miami Beach and get up out of town completely.
If Wade still "resides" in Miami, he can avoid Illinois’ 3.75-percent personal income tax on national endorsement deals, per the South Florida Business Journal:
Those national sponsorship deals are a big reason why Wade could retain his Miami home. Bakhai pointed out that Illinois has a 3.75 percent personal income tax. That would apply to Wade’s salary from home games with the Chicago Bulls and any Illinois sponsorship deals, but national sponsorship deals would be taxed by the state in which Wade resides.
So if Wade keeps his off-season residence in Miami, he can avoid Illinois state tax on his national sponsorship income, Bakhai.
So while you shouldn’t expect to see much of Wade in the Magic City from October through April during the NBA season outside of a couple Bulls-Heat matchups at American Airlines Arena, you might catch Flash chilling on Sobe next to neighbor and former Heat teammate Chris Bosh the other half of the year.
Also, whether Wade’s HGTV show with wife Gabrielle Union about Flipping Homes has to be up in the air as well.
- Tour the Absurd $10.9 Million Castle Dwyane Wade & Gabrielle Union Got Married In [Curbed Miami]
- Chris Bosh’s Miami House [Curbed Miami]
- House Hunting for Hassan Whiteside, the Miami Heat's $98M Man [Curbed Miami]