Wade is considered, by some, the third-greatest shooting guard ever. Teague disagrees.
Especially in the age of social media, there isn’t a time in basketball when fans and pundits discuss the placement of the league’s great players since the NBA’s inception.
Recently, 12-year NBA veteran Jeff Teague weighed in on where James Harden stacked up against Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade, who some consider the third-greatest shooting guard of all-time behind Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.
“I got [James Harden] over [Dwyane Wade] but I’m outta pocket,” Teague said on The Bradeaux & Will Show.” “D-Wade had Shaq then he had Bron. He ain’t never really been by himself. When he was by himself, the Heat were trash. Harden is better, bro. I am sorry.”
Harden has greater individual numbers than Wade, if you compare their statistical resumes, though Harden’s supporting cast and usage rate in his prime Houston seasons supersedes Wade’s prime without LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal.
Wade was also the far superior defender and consistently conjured together performances conducive to team success in playoff and high-leverage situations, unlike his counterpart (consistently).
In Wade’s best individual season in 2008-09, he averaged 30.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 7.5 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.3 blocks on 49.1 percent shooting—one of the best two-way seasons in the 21st century, even though Wade did not win MVP. In that same season, he posted a 30.4 player efficiency rating with a 57.4 true-shooting percentage, leading the Heat to the No. 5 seed in the East (43-39).
Even though Miami lost in seven games to the Atlanta Hawks, very few have done more with less than what Wade had that season, including Harden. Here’s a full highlight montage of Wade’s 2008-09 season below:
Both players have had successful careers in their own right and both had different skill sets, despite playing the same position. Wade finished with 13 All-Star appearances, eight All-NBA awards, a scoring title, a three-time champion and a three-time All-Defensive honoree, among plenty other accolades.
Wade will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame next month, while Harden requested a trade earlier this offseason for the third time in three seasons.
Where do you think Harden and Wade rank on the all-time list? Let us know in the comments!