Wade aims to be back by opener

Heat guard Dwyane Wade said Tuesday he is optimistic about making it back from last month's knee and shoulder surgeries by the start of next season.
In his first interview since the May 15 procedures, Wade said the Oct. 30 start of the 2007-08 regular season remains a tangible target for his return.
'I'm confident I'm going to get back to where I need to be,' he said on a conference call from Chicago, where his wife recently gave birth to the couple's second child. 'It'll take a lot of hard work, and I'm not scared of that.'
The initial prognosis had Wade out as long as six months from the date of the surgeries. He had the option of putting off the surgery on his left shoulder and solely addressing the tendinitis in his left knee.
'I'm glad that I got both of them out of the way and got 'em done, so I'm [on] a faster pace to recovery,' he said, with his knee rehabilitation beginning two weeks ago and the work on his shoulder to commence next week.
Although he undertook an extensive rehabilitation program in order to return from his mid-February dislocated shoulder in time for the playoffs, Wade said that gain was lost when he underwent the May procedure that eliminated concerns about the shoulder again popping out of joint.
'It starts from scratch all over again, but it helped me mentally, knowing that I can do it,' he said.
Wade said he would move his rehabilitation program to Las Vegas to be with the U.S. national team when it reconvenes this summer for an Olympic qualification tournament, but would not participate.
'I do intend on going up there. I'm still a captain,' he said. 'I'm going to be there for moral support and support for my team.'
E. Jones WANTS MORE After spending the second half of last season with the Heat, guard Eddie Jones said he plans to play another season.
Jones, 35, becomes a free agent July 1, which would be the earliest the Heat could discuss yet another reunion.
'I feel like I still can play, and we'll see what happens,' the Weston resident and former Ely High star said last weekend at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, where he attended a dinner to benefit the Crockett Foundation.
Jones, who struggled in the postseason and was benched during the Heat's final playoff game, said he loves 'being here, my kids love it, my wife loves it, my family is here, my mother, my stepfather.'
WORKOUTS BEGIN The Heat worked out six draft prospects Tuesday at AmericanAirlines Arena.
In addition to Georgia Tech guard Javaris Crittenton, Southern Cal guard Nick Young and Virginia Tech guard Zabian Dowdell, prospects who stand as possibilities for the Heat's No. 20 selection in the first round, the Heat also worked out Florida forward Chris Richard, Maryland guard D.J. Strawberry and Providence center Herbert Hill.
The Heat does not currently hold a second-round round selection in the June 28 draft, which came as a bit of a surprise to Richard, who said, 'That's news to me.'
Crittenton and Young are expected to be taken in advance of the No. 20 selection, but Young said he learned a lesson from the plummet of Notre Dame's quarterback at the NFL Draft.
'You never know,' he said. 'With the Brady Quinn thing ... you've just got to stay focused.'