Add Heat guard Dwyane Wade to the list of athletes the William Morris Agency is handling these days. The elite talent agency has signed Wade for marketing work, focusing on deals related to the Beijing Olympics, since Wade is a member USA Basketball team that will compete in the 2008 Games, and for entertainment work.

Agent Henry Thomas, Executive Vice President, Basketball Division of CSMG Sports, will continue to represent Wade and will work in conjunction with WMA on the off-court deals. Thomas has helped secure long-term deals for Wade with Converse, Gatorade, T-Mobile, Lincoln Navigator and Topps.

"Dwyane's combination of performance and personality gives him an undeniable international appeal that is becoming more relevant as the NBA continues to gain fans beyond the U.S.," WMA President Dave Wirtschafter said in a statement. "We look forward to augmenting what CSMG has done for Dwyane and working with them to broaden the scope and breadth of the D-Wade brand around the globe."

According to this week's SportsBusiness Journal, WMA will also explore options for Wade in acting and producing. From the journal article:

The first order of business will be exploring Olympic-related endorsement opportunities for Wade, who is a member of the U.S. basketball team that will compete in the 2008 Olympics. “We have an office in China. Dwyane is not as well-known in Asia as he should be,” Wirtschafter said.

Wade, the 2006 NBA Finals MVP, has starred in numerous national commercials, including spots for T-Mobile, Gatorade, Converse and the Lincoln Navigator, and has developed “a taste” for acting, “which is coming, quite frankly, from doing these commercials,” Thomas said. He shot a cameo role in a feature film this summer, Thomas said, although he would not provide details.

WMA’s other athlete clients include Serena Williams, Michelle Wie and Kevin Garnett.