James Harden’s legacy places him among the very best guards to ever play basketball. Chief among his toughest competition for best guards of all time is Dwyane Wade, who has his own case. Among those who believe Harden was the better of the two is his former teammate, Patrick Beverley, which Wade understandably took issue with.
Dwyane Wade’s Response to Patrick Beverley’s James Harden Claim
On Wade’s own podcast, he responded directly to Beverley, explaining why he thinks Beverley doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
“You experienced a portion of my game,” Wade said. “When I was winning championships you weren’t even around. You didn’t get to feel the wrath. My career was hit by injuries and I still had a top 75 career. You don’t know the wrath of me as a player you know a portion, and you still couldn’t (expletive) with me then.”
Beverley also made it clear how he liked and respected Wade despite his take on the NBA legend.
Dwyane Wade responds to Patrick Beverly saying James Harden is better:
“You experienced a portion of my game, when I was winning championships you weren’t even around. You didn’t get to feel the wrath. My career was hit by injuries and I still had a top 75 career. You don’t know… https://t.co/c9dpEQnl2I pic.twitter.com/SCkR6Y1e6d
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) March 27, 2026
Props to Wade for not taking Harden down in response to Beverley but instead propping himself up to let people know about the legacy he left behind despite all the setbacks he suffered. Whether he should be considered better than Harden is, of course, subjective, but there aren’t that many players, let alone specifically guards, who were better at basketball than he was.
Beverley didn’t come onto the NBA scene until 2013, which coincided with the last year Wade made an All-NBA team (the third team), signifying that he was on the decline by the time Beverley had figured himself out. Beverley also solidified his place in the NBA as Harden was rounding into form, as the two were teammates just as Harden was starting to consistently go on MVP campaigns.
Maybe it would have been different if Beverley got the chance to play with Wade when he was at the peak of his powers. Wade never won the MVP, and he finished top three in MVP voting exactly once back in 2009, but he has three titles and an NBA Finals MVP selection that came in his third NBA season, something Harden never had.
Harden’s legacy as one of the best players of his time will not be easily forgotten, and neither should Wade’s, for that matter.
