Small compilation of 6’4 Dwyane Wade being an elite rim protector
It’s shit like this where whenever people try to compare 3x nba champion dwade who was an absolute dog on defense to harden and it just makes me roll my eyes.
This isn’t even showing how capable of a perimeter defender he could be when he had to lock in.
It’s the difference of ‘having a bag’ vs winning playoff basketball.
Harden’s peak was insane as well, but I’d take prime Wade any day
Harden is good dude. He is cursed to have peaked at the same time as the warriors dynasty then faced some terrible luck in Brooklyn.
Of course he’s good. But he’s not as good as prime dwade and never was.
I think there’s an argument, and I hated prime Harden’s play style. He was a bad bad man off the dribble and he didn’t need to flop to score.
Would take Wade if I was building a fantasy team though
No. There is no argument. Harden has played defense like 4 times in his career. You can’t just be ass at one half of the entire game and be compared to someone who was fantastic at both ends. End of story.
But you don’t understand- harden has more 3s… and assists.
So you have Wade over Jokic and Curry then? Good one nephew
Curry isn’t a traffic cone on D like Harden is
Curry on an off night also provides so much more than Harden. Even when he’s shooting like shit, there’s still someone, sometimes two guys chasing him around the court, and the ball stays moving. An off night for Harden is abysmal, filled with turnovers and tons of stoppages with his foul baiting, letting the opponent feast in transition while the extent of his defensive effort is going for a reach and then giving up.
There were two players being discussed, and I said nothing about any other players. Your response is to then put words in my mouth regarding other players and call me a nephew.
Absolutely brilliant.
Wade is my favorite player of all time, and while I prefer him over Harden, I understand the discussion. Especially considering Wade was a very poor 3 pt shooter and Harden was great. When you look at the evolution of the game, it’s definitely something to consider
>Wade was a very poor 3 pt shooter and Harden was great
fun stat about this is that Wade has a higher 3 point percentage in the playoffs than Harden does (though Harden obviously has a much higher volume than Wade did, 7.3 attempts per game for Harden to 1.8 for Wade)
One thing about Wade was when you needed a 3, he was good for it. He would even do the heat check thing where he would hoist one up when he was hot, and usually make it.
Also FUCK NY, but congrats I guess 🤮
Never forget purple shirt guy
I’d take Wade over Harden even in this era tbh. He can adapt to the system of the team. My issues with Harden is even though he’s a great player he IS the system most of his career that’s why he hasn’t won a chip. The only time he was close to winning he had CP3 who is one of the goat playmakers.
We used to expect our superstars to play both sides of the court. Now we glaze them for just one side.
I’m fine if they play one side of it still manages to result in enough defense to win.
Wade wasn’t exactly leading the league in assist or 3 pointers, both of which Harden has done multiple times. They’re just completely different players, neither one is a strictly better or worse version of the other.
Harden is better at aspects of the game but at the end of the day, were picking one guy to help win a ring, it’s Wade no questions asked.
Harden is strictly worse.
Michael Jordan and Cory Joseph are completely different players as well and Cory Joseph is strictly worse.
I don’t think you know what that term means. That would mean that Wade is a better shooter and playmaker as well. Strictly worse means worse in every way. That’s laughably untrue. They’re very different players with different strengths and weaknesses.
Basketball isn’t just about shooting. Nobody has Tim Duncan as one of the goats because of his jump shot. It’s an all around game, and you can say that Dirk was worse than Duncan, even if he was great on his own and obviously had a better shot.
You can say he’s worse. You can’t say that he’s strictly worse, because he’s a better shooter. We’re not even disagreeing here, you simply don’t understand what that specific term means. I’d encourage you to Google it since you don’t want to hear it from me, apparently.
yeah i don’t know why people are comparing them, they played completely different roles for their teams and are completely different players. Wade is not an iso heavy guard with a 3 pt shot, he’s not an all-time playmaker and facilitator. Harden isn’t a defensive master or a hyper-athletic driver.
They a both Shooting Guards. You can absolutely compare them. They play the same position.
sure you can compare people in the same position, but that doesn’t mean they play the same role for their team. it’s not hard to understand that.
The gap between them in offense is way bigger than the gap on defense.
I think dwade is an all timer but i think he suffers the most from “one/two experience bleeding into his whole career”.
He had a phenomenal finals in 06 and a great season in 09 but aside from those, he was either a wingman, injured, or getting bumped out in the first round against shit competition in a disgustingly top heavy east.
Meanwhile, harden literally changed the game, was a top 5 offensive player and engine all time at his peak, took similar level trammates further and peaked higher, while also being an elite facilitator. He just had him prime at the same time as the best team of all time.
If dwades stats in the playoffs were just flat out better than hardens, id understand, but they are actually far closer than ppl realise, with harden even beating him out on most categories.
I think its harden > dwade, but its close. And the fact ppl say the inverse and its not close is so disingenous.
lol this is such a bad take. Wade played in a slower era, of course his scoring wasn’t as high.
But you’re being completely disingenuous about playoff stats. Harden only beats Wade in FT%, rebounds (by 0.2), assists and steals (by 0.1). Wade has him in points (by 0.1), blocks, FG% (by 5%, no surprise considering James shrinks in the playoffs) 3P% and turnovers.
Even adjusted for their eras, harden was a better scorer. Idk why ppl think i only meant counting stats. Not to mention, he was a vastly better facilitator, playmaker, and crunch time scorer.
My apologies, what i meant by playoff stats was with both in their primes. I dont really count hardens okc days nor do i really count both their end of careers.
I know this is a hot take in r/nba, which is fine i guess. But the concept that ppl think wade is SOOO far from him, when in reality its an actual conversation with harden (in my eyes) being the better player is the true disingenous take.
I took both their primes , harden from 14-21 and wade 05-12. Not only does harden perform better significantly in the rs, but like i said in the playoffs, they are actually pretty close. Harden has in on most things like ts%, per 36, per 100, BPM, ORTG and wade has him on things like ws, DRTG and DBPM.
Wade led the league in scoring one year at 30ppg, I don’t know why you want to act like Wade is a bum on offense like Harden is a bum on defense. The gap on offense is significantly closer between the two than the gap on defense. Maybe Harden was a better crunch time scorer in the regular season, but I’ll take Wade in the playoffs 10⁄10 times.
When the fuck did i act like wade was a bum on offense? Lool dont strawman me. Harden was just a historically goated offensive player in comparison. Not to mention, harden actually isnt a “bad defender”. Hes relatively average. The stats and the eye test back that up. He just had a year where the media reallt spun that narrative, and it tied with probably the yesr he played the worst defense of his career.
The gap in offense is not closer because individual defense is far less of an important skill than being an entire offensive engine. Theres no going around that.
I watched both their whole careers and while i think dqade is part of that upper echelon, his prime was too short (due to injuries), his solo feats arent as impressive (solo as in no other all star/all nba on his team) and his comp was weaker. He still was an great playoff performer, but so is harden.
You didn’t say he was a bum, but acting like the gap between them on offense is bigger than the gap on defense is ridiculous. Wade is one of the best two way guards EVER; Harden is not. Harden is a great offensive player, but there are two sides of the game and Harden doesn’t engage with one side.
Comparing them as playoff performers is absurd as well. Wade CARRIED that ‘06 team to a championship, Harden could never do that and has had better teams than that and always shrinks in the playoffs, especially as he’s gotten older.
Anyways, I know I’m not gonna change your mind so I’m done.
Im saying the gap being wide is because one player is a HISTORIC, GENERATIONAL offensive player compared to a very good offensive player, vs an elite defender and an average one.
No one is denying wade, in his prime, being one of the best two ways. If you want to believe that being an individual defender is more significant than being a historic offensive player, that’s on you.
Wade carried in two series in that 06 run: the finals and the series against the nets. The other two, it was really 1a 1b with shaq and even in the finals (just like the rest of the playoffs) teams elected to double shaq due to historic precedence. Wade just took advantage and did what he did well. To say he carried that team to a championship is the quickest way to see someone didn’t actually watch that run. Harden has done FAR more with less talent, which is why when they both had shitty teams, Harden was getting 55 wins and going to the wcf and Wade was getting bounced out the first round by the luol deng bulls and the ben gordon bulls.
Stop the nonsense.
the craziest part is Wade averaged 1+ blocks per game for 6 straight seasons from age 23-28. as a 6’4 guard. not many players outside of bigs can say that
Right now Derrick White is averaging 1.0 blocks per game for his career and that’s in only a career 29.3 mpg. And that’s crazy cause White isn’t even close to the insane athlete DWade was.
White gets his blocks kinda differently tbf, wade sent that shit away out of pure vertical athleticism
Jordan averaged 1.019 blocks per game in his first 10 seasons.
Damn he must have been pretty good
Yeah who is this Jordan guy?
Reminds me of when all the kids through Kanye found some unknown British musical artist Paul McCartney after enter collab.
I find it just as crazy how clean these blocks are.
And these blocks show he’s not just a weak-side helper, dude could challenge you straight up at the rim
6’4 guards blocking shots always feel weird af
the craziest part is Wade averaged 1+ blocks per game for 6 straight seasons from age 23-28. as a 6’4 guard.
I mean that’s a pretty specific sentence, not many people can say that at all
Crazy he had the career he did while having zero mensicus in either knee
Could’ve been even more explosive
One of those weird “what ifs” where he clearly had a great career but man I would love to see wade with knees
I feel like a decent amount all time level players have these what-ifs.
Duncan, Dirk, Kawhi, Bird, etc
Grant Hill with Knees was keeping up with Jordan.
He was LeBron before LeBron. You couldn’t stop him if he was going downhill.
Oh for sure, its why sports are fun lol
yeah maybe that meniscus is what made him a bad jumpshooter
I don’t think you understand what you’re saying. You are saying that the 3rd greatest SG of all time was a bad jumpshooter… If this was true, you really believe 6’4’’ Wade was scoring 30 PPG on dunks only?
4th best SG of all time.
Who are you putting above him?
Jordan, Jerry West, Harden.
lol Harden is definitely not better considering he played zero defense
Harden above Kobe is quite the take.
Ragebait
Yet, you have D Wade above Kobe… interesting
I hope you all get another chip someday so you can stop being like this
Wade with knees might have been the GOAT
As someone with shaved/partially removed meniscus in my dominant knee, I find this even more remarkable.
In terms of physical tools, mid 2000s Flash was a stronger and bigger but equally athletic version of peak Westbrook.
Insanely high peak.
Wade was so much more controlled.
Westbrook has one gear. Wade had 5.
Nah Westbrook was more athletic. Wade was way more fluid though.
Just imagine DWade with meniscus in his knees
Eh, it’s really debatable, Wade just rarely tried to break the rim while dunking, but that’s not the only aspect of athleticism
Prime Wesbrook could always get to the rim with no dribble moves or screens. Just straight up athletic burst in a straight line past his defender. He was also probably the fastest player in the league running end to end.
Yeah and Wade was literally nicknamed “Flash”.. And was unquestionably the fastest in the league in his prime and capable of taking on anyone without screens as well.. Your point?
Istg, it’s like those guys have never watched a prime Wade game.
Heat fans disagree with you but go off
https://np.reddit.com/r/heat/comments/gjr90n/better_pure_athlete_westbrook_or_wade/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
He was nicknamed flash because of Shaq so that doesn’t mean anything.
My point is that Wade wasn’t doing this https://youtu.be/S2G_swy_8eo?si=eCRV_eZBR347s0eC
No way man. Westbrook looked faster and more explosive but that’s because he played out of control constantly at 100. DWade had control of himself. He could hit all those same athletic benchmarks but you didn’t have to worry about him blasting his shoulder into the stanchion or diving over 3 rows of seats to come up limping lol.
DWade also lost more athleticism much more quickly than Westbrook due to the knee surgery situation. So, on that basis I guess you’re right Westbrook was more athletic, practically. Ideally, I give it to Wade.
Thats why I said that Wade was more fluid. He had more body control and coordination.
But if we are talking raw athleticism then it has to go to Westbrook. His speed, explosiveness, vertical, strength, and stamina were maxed out.
Like look at this https://youtu.be/u__a4i05RhA?si=-9xmEUY0AN4521fO
Weird that all that athleticism you’re glazing russ over never translated to defense, isn’t it?
Defense is between the ears
TIL Marcus Camby is a basketball savant
He is longer than people think. 6’3,75 without shoes, so no idea why he was listed as 6’4 instead of 6’5 back then. Add the nearly 6’11 wingspan and you have an strong and athletic guy, who is as long as some forwards like Taurean Prince.
Exactly, that crazy wingspan made him able to play like a much taller defender
While it fits my agenda to call him a 6’4” guard the truth is that Wade was a wing with 6’11” wingspan.
He was a terror, definitely not undersized by any means
Also why he was such a prolific dunker despite his vert being average.
crazy how dwhite is doing this with half the athleticism while being shorter with a smaller wingspan
Crazy how DWhite isn’t 1/36th of the player Wade was
Third best shooting guard of all time, the greatest shot blocking guard of all time, and his 2011 finals was the greatest performance by any of LeBron’s teammates.
2009 Wade is one of the most underrated single season performances of all time.
What did he have against BroLo?
BROOK LOPEZ (trying to make a layup) OVER ME?
Bro was 6’4 playing defense like he was a 7-foot prime Dwight Howard
There’s an interview where a former Heat player is talking about learning their defensive scheme, they’re in practice and Spo is like “yeah funnel them over there and don’t worry about it, DWade will block that.”
I thought it was gonna be all Brook Lopez getting stuffed at the rim lol
If dwade was 4 inches taller, he would have been the best player of all time.
But I guess you can say that about alot of people. Like if allen iverson was 7 inches taller.
I remember watching that first season that Lebron was there, and during the first half, he and dwade seemed like on the same level. You couldn’t say who was better. Crazy. Then wade took a back seat, and had persistent knee injuries
Wade and AI dont have the shooting ability of Jordan nor the passing ability of LeBron so not sure how that would have been the case.
Prime Wade wasn’t that far behind LeBron in terms of passing ability, from 05-10 Wade averaged 7.0 assists per game compared to LeBron’s 7.1. And his midrange game of course wasn’t MJ level, but it was absolutely elite.
Got the nerve to put Hardens name in the same breath as my guy.
I will always upvote defensive highlights on this sub.
Is anyone else blown away that none of the players he blocked flopped? You rarely see blocks like this anymore without the shooter crumpling to the floor.
Just looks like watching a different game. Players don’t play through the foul as much because they are always looking for a foul. So even when they do get fouled, they flail their body around to sell the call further rather than finishing strong hoping for the and 1.
The game evolved poorly in a lot of ways from the 2000s/2010s
This is my kind of content!
I swear in some of those blocks he jumps second but elevates so fast that he blocks the ball while the dunker is still elevating. He just pushes the ball out of their hand.
Athletic freak
Dude really hated Brook Lopez
This is missing Wade’s block against Steve Francis. That was the moment I knew Wade was taking over this league; Francis was still an all-star and just didn’t look like he was on the same caliber. Unfortunately I never saw that block again after it happened. Lots of highlights from back then forgotten.
Shot blocking shooting guards is my crack.
A fellow Derrick White fan spotted in the wild.
7’0 wingspan
Dude was a savage, that third or fourth clip he almost puts his head to the rim.
pre-injury Wade was a physical freak
I’ve seen people try to argue Derrick White is the best shot blocking guard just because of stats, but anyone who tries to argue that has obviously never watched Wade play.
Dwyane Wade and Derrick White are the Alonzo Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo of guards in terms of rim protection
Finally! Somebody put the Brandon Bass one in there. That one was particularly filthy.
I’m more impressed by the strength in his arm required to be able to pry loose the ball from all those guys going for it with two hands solid on the ball than the positioning and verticality.
As a Heat fan I grew up watching Wade I remember when we drafted him. It will forever be Wade county & he will always be my favorite player who I got the chance to watch.
Wade really really loved that block on Dirk lol. They seem to have settled whatever beef they had but there was a legit rivalry there
After the first three clips I thought this was secretly a Lopez slander post
Yes he’s 6’4 but he has like a 7 foot wingspan.
3x Lopez (7’1) 1x Spencer Hawes (7’1) 2x Chandler (7’0) 1x Embiid (7’0) 1x JJ Hickson (6’9) 1x Brandon Bass (6’8) 1x Melo (6’7)
Damn that’s impressive.
He got Lopez three times actually
You right! Good Looking out.
He is one of the best 2 way players ever and thats insane considering he could out up 30 points anytime.
Thats why lebron running to wade and bosh ruined the nba. Such a joke team up.
His block vs chandler in the finals was insane. Wade was doing everything to will his team
I have said many times that during his short stint in Cleveland he was our best rim protector and people scoff at the notion. Still have no idea why we traded him (and D Rose) away for nothing lol.
It’s pretty wild how few times he ended up on a poster despite trying to block everything. The Taj Gibson one hurt though
Brook Lopez had a rough start to the film sesh
Cavs legend JJ Hickson sighting!
for a moment I thought that No 11 was Yao Ming
Some people say Lebron was the beat player since 2008 but i believe Wade was better than Lebron until 2012
Imagine him on the 2004 Pistons
Wade Jones!
Even tho he was a Heat and knocked my team out of finals contention. He was one helluva player and I miss watching him
Marquette legend
He was also an amazing playmaker. In terms of all around basketball players you simply will not find a lot of players better than Wade. A pure basketball player. The euro, the crazy finishes at the rim, the lobs to Bron, the pick and roll genius, his floaters, his mid range game, the step backs, the crossovers, the weak side blocks, the lane steals, his 1on1 defense, his post game, the man was fearless and made it look so easy. Only Jordan and Kobe above him at the 2 guard. Him and Kobe are the only 2 guards that if Jordan is on the other side I wouldn’t be shitting my pants completely.
LOPEZ
I want this from VJ next season
Never could stand how he spells his name.
Brother, it’s literally his parents’ fault 😭
How his name is spelled would’ve been better. I’m fresh off a 12 hr shift bro I’m beat 😭
I watched a season of the Cube and I swear he introduces himself as Dwy-ane Wade, albeit with a GA accent
Most of those are not really rim protection. They are weakside help blocks. A rim protector normally isn’t sneaking in off the weakside baseline.
Guards like Wade and MJ usually got these kinds of weakside help blocks, but that’s not really the same thing as being like Mutombo.
Most of these, he was just a weak side blocker.
He wasnt squaring up with these dudes before they shot.
Not really rim protection.
uh huh
First time watching the NBA?
They are different skillsets.
Literally the first three blocks in the video are Wade squaring up and blocking Brook Lopez head on…
Go back and watch. Whoever was the center was in a horrible position. He was the rim protector.