Heat's Wade to have surgery, miss Olympics

Miami, FL – Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade will have surgery on his left knee and won't be able to play in the London Olympics.

Wade said tests done after the NBA Finals showed he needed surgery on the knee that had bothered him throughout the season.

"While every part of me wants to be in London, I need to take this time to do what's best to improve my health and allow me to continue to play the game I love," Wade said in a statement released by USA Basketball.

Wade spoke with USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo and Olympic coach Mike Krzyzewski to tell them personally he wouldn't be able to play next month.

Krzyzewski, who coached the U.S. team to a gold medal in Beijing four years ago, when Wade was the team's leading scorer, said he was supportive of the guard's decision and hoped for his speedy recovery.

Wade, fresh off winning his second NBA title with the Heat, told the Associated Press that doctors told him it would be a "cleanup" procedure and that he was expected to be ready when the Heat start training camp in the fall.

He averaged 16.0 points in Beijing and was also part of bronze medal teams at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 2006 world championships in Japan.

"D-Wade has a lot of equity with USA Basketball and has made great contributions to our program and we're sorry he won't be with us this summer but we know he'll be with us in spirit," Colangelo said.

There are now 17 finalists vying for 12 spots on the men's team that will go to London, including Wade's Miami teammates LeBron James and Chris Bosh. The team will open its training with a camp in Las Vegas from July 6-12.