Yao and Wade ultimately led the Heat to fourth in the Eastern Conference.
Now they had advanced to the second round of the playoffs, it's noteworthy that Yao's salary was only half of Shaquille O'Neal's, yet the performance of the Heat didn't appear to have dipped much.
Looking at "Big Z's" stats, he averaged 18.6 points and added 10.4 rebounds per game, truly a "bang for the buck!"
Pat Riley believed that by the end of this season, "Big Z's" trade value would surely increase.
Of course, even if they didn't trade for the preferred players, Riley was okay with Heat continuing to play Wade and "Big Z" as a duo next season.
Not to mention that Heat's gains weren't limited to just "Big Z's" revitalization.
David Lee was another gain, now in his second professional season, his average stats had soared to 10.8 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.
Yes, the Heat was among the few teams in the league that had two players averaging over 10 rebounds each game.
