Dwyane Wade collected many accolades, awards, and trophies over the course of his 16-year NBA career. He won three championships with the Miami Heat as both a first and second scoring option. However, one of Wade’s Hall of Fame peers thinks the “younger generation” does not appreciate the star guard enough.
Carmelo Anthony Blasts ‘Younger Generation’ for Forgetting About Dwyane Wade
Anthony recently published an episode of his podcast, “7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony.” He emphasized that too many younger players forget how dominant Wade was throughout his career.
“I don’t think people understand how bad of a motherf****r D-Wade was. I’m saying it with this much passion because you don’t hear that name come up much with this younger generation. When he was on his s**t, arguably he was the best two-guard in the league at one point in time,” expressed Anthony.
Wade racked up 13 All-Star selections, 12 straight from 2005 to 2016, and eight All-NBA honors with Miami. He played for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls from 2016 to 2018 later in his career, before retiring with the Heat in 2019. Wade averaged 22.7 points, 5.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.6 steals in 948 regular-season contests in Miami.
Wade led the league in scoring with 30.2 points per contest in his All-NBA first team 2008-09 campaign. He also finished third in the MVP race, third in Defensive Player of the Year voting, and earned All-Defense second team honors.
The No. 5 pick in the 2003 NBA draft affected the game in every aspect, outside of the 3-point shot. He shot just 29.3% from beyond the arc on 1.8 attempts per game. However, his handle, lightning-quick first step, and athleticism allowed him to attack the rim at will. Defenders still had trouble keeping him in front, even though they gave him space on the perimeter. Anthony expanded on Wade’s scoring ability.
“He was probably the best at shot creation. The way he created shots in the paint, floaters, one-handed, taking contact, behind-the-back, his speed, power … [There weren’t] guards that [were] athletic like that at his size,” said the 10-time All-Star.
Wade Consistently Played at a High Level in the Playoffs
The Heat won the 2006 NBA finals, and he took home Finals MVP, averaging 28.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.1 blocks. Five and six seasons later, after Chris Bosh and LeBron James joined Wade in Miami, the team won the 2012 and 2013 championships.
Wade made the playoffs in 13 seasons of his career. Thanks to his consistent winning ways, he ranks high on multiple playoff lists. Wade sits 12th all-time in playoff points with 3,954 and 15th in steals at 273. Anthony wants younger hoopers to realize just how dominant Wade was throughout his career.
