Following a Hall of Fame career on the court, D-Wade has already build an impressive portfolio as a mogul across the worlds of media, apparel, and sports team ownership.
There are some people who retire from a career in professional sports and leap at the opportunity to retreat from public view and return to private life at long last. Then, there are guys like future Basketball Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade, who might just be even busier in his career’s second act than he was as a legendary talent that elevated the Miami Heat to new heights.
The 39-year-old Chicago native and Marquette University product has his hands in just about every type of business under the sun these days. Wade has an ownership stake in the Utah Jazz and Real Salt Lake through Qualtrics founder and all-around buddy Ryan Smith. He’s got a wide-ranging deal with WarnerMedia that includes NBA and NCAA studio work for TNT, a TBS game show he hosts called The Cube, a creative director role at Bleacher Report, and a development deal for his production company,59th & Prairie.
Wade’s an author, has a wine, co-owns restaurants, has an equity stake in sneaker and apparel company Li-Ning, has a successful charity, and is married to Gabrielle freakin’ Union.
And he doesn’t even turn 40 until Jan. 17.
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Dwyane Wade’s Earnings & Investments
- Career basketball earnings: $196.39 million
- Estimated net worth: $170 million
- Key endorsements: Gatorade, Li Ning, Budweiser, Panini, New Era, Hublot
- Major investments: Li-Ning; Real estate, Utah Jazz, and Real Salt Lake through Smith Entertainment Group; 59th & Prairie Entertainment, BallerTV, Proudly, YNGDNA, Wade Cellars, Stance, Taft, Goldin Auctions
- Involved with charities including Wade’s World Foundation, The Social Change Fund, and St. Jude’s.
Career Accomplishments
NBA championships: 3 (2006, ’12, ’13)
NBA Finals MVP awards: 1 (2006)
All-NBA selections: 8
All-Star selections: 13
Scoring titles: 1 (2009)
Olympic medals: 1 gold (Beijing 2008), 1 bronze (Athens 2004)
Member of the NBA 75th Anniversary team
Miami Heat all-time leader in points and assists
No. 3 jersey retired by Miami Heat and Marquette Golden Eagles
D-Wade Business Milestones
- Joined Qualtrics founder Ryan Smith as part of the ownership group of Utah Jazz in 2021, then partnered with Smith Entertainment Group to purchase minority ownership stake in Major League Soccer’s Real Salt Lake in January 2022.
- Signed 10-year, $60 million shoe deal with Chinese sportswear brand Li-Ning in 2012 that included equity in the company, leaving Jordan Brand; launched the “Way of Wade” clothing and apparel brand under the Li-Ning umbrella.
- Struck wide-ranging deal with WarnerMedia in 2019 that includes working as an NBA and NCAA Tournament analyst, a creative director at Bleacher Report and a development deal for his production company 59th & Prairie Entertainment.
- Joined BallerTV as global ambassador in 2019, offering live coverage, replays and highlights for amateur sports.
- Authored books including photo-based 2021 memoir DWYANE (which included a tie-in NFT drop), 2012 autobiography A Father First and 2021 children’s book Shady Baby, co-authored with Union.
- Announced collaboration with cannabis brand Jeeter in late 2021 on three limited-edition strains
- Founded Proudly with Union, a sustainable baby care brand with products dedicated to the unique skincare needs of children of color.
Flash’s Digital Footprint
Twitter followers: 9.6 million
Instagram followers: 18.4 million
Facebook followers: 12 million
Wade became more interested in business early in his standout carer with the Heat when he injured his shoulder in 2007 and grew concerned about how long he could play the game at a superstar level.
With an open mind (and an open checkbook), Flash learned from legends like former teammate Shaquille O’Neal and Magic Johnson about the business side, opening his world to not only endorsement deals like Gatorade, but collaborations with legacy brands like Saks Fifth Avenue and a docuseries for Facebook Watch.
Wade had the foresight to bring photographer Bob Metelus with him to document his final season, which concluded with his retirement on April 10, 2019 and led to the publishing of DWYANE in November. Wade was able to focus even more on his family, where he has four children including 19-year-old Zaire, who plays for the Jazz’s G-League team the Salt Lake City Stars, and a 12-year-old transgender daughter named Zaya. When he wanted to go into television, he sought advice from Michael Strahan, who parlayed a post-playing career into television better than almost anyone.
Dwyane Wade is now a sports team owner twice over, a media mogul, television host, and an entrepreneur across numerous industries before even reaching four full decades on earth. And at this rate, the next decade could be the flashiest one of all.
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