Thursday, October 22nd, 2009 at 8:00 am  |  262 responses

Top 50: Dwyane Wade, no. 3

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

by Khalid Salaam

One of the benefits of having a name like mine is that I learned at a young age not to be a follower. I’m never rebellious for the hell of it but I’m pretty much just gonna do me. So last year when I kept saying that Wade was the MVP, I meant it. I wasn’t trying to go against popular sentiment jDwyane Wadeust to stand out and seem different. I just felt that his level of play coupled with having a rookie head coach, two rookie teammates as heavy rotation guys and a bunch of players who frankly wouldn’t have played on other teams was impressive. Really, I don’t know what more he could have done. Quietly DWade became a great help defender and even his man-to-man D was improved (and it didn’t suck to begin with).

All the players in the Top 5 have awesome stats — numbers that exist as tangible proof of their greatness, so to speak. With that being the case, maybe averages of 30 points, 5 rebounds, 7.5 assists, 2.2 steals, 1.3 blocks, while shooting 49 percent and playing in 79 games doesn’t move you. But that isn’t true, is it? Three out of four people who just read Wade’s stat line just made the ‘wow’ face (you know when your mouth closes and your eyebrows raise while your head nods ever so slightly) regarding last year’s numbers.

Last year was Wade’s “y’all musta forgot” year, the one where he reminded all the people who wrote him off due to injury and whatever else that there not a single player better in the League than him. Same level, sure, but obviously better? No. I cannot be swayed from this opinion, so don’t try to give me some other dude’s stats or tell me how many wins some other team won. You put Wade on the Lakers and the outcome would be the same. Bron as well, for that matter.

Something I hate that’s happened in the League recently are the instantaneous, all bets are settled, early season conclusions. It’s like the Heisman Trophy (aka the biggest hustle in American sports), where a bunch douchebags decide who should win the award a month before the season starts and then spend the whole year trying to justify that person they pre-selected is in fact the best player in the country. By Thanksgiving, the MVP award was settled and those who didn’t fall in line were mocked. You couldn’t even bring up another name and if you did, you would be silently patted on the back as if to say, ‘run along and go play,’ like you were a school kid.

Well, not this time. I’m gonna start naming names this year. All these sportswriters and diarists (bloggers) who jump of the handle and by the second week of the season who claim to know everything will get called out. I’m about to be a media assassin (much respect to Harry Allen) out this joint.

As far as a win total for the Heat, I can’t say, really. I don’t think they can crack the 50-game mark, but I think they can get close, 48 maybe. I do, however, expect Wade to have an even better season than last. He needs Michael Beasley to stopping puffing (instead of taking two and passing, how about he take up a regular vice like internet porn or tweeting?) and play with the ability that we all think he possesses. If Beasley can take the load off of Wade’s shoulders, Flash likely will have an all-world season. And when that happens I won’t even say I told you so.

I’m classy, remember that.

Notes
• Rankings are based solely on projected ’09-10 performance.
• Contributors to this list include: Jake Appleman, Brett Ballantini, Russ Bengtson, Toney Blare, Shannon Booher, Myles Brown, Franklyn Calle, Gregory Dole, Emry DowningHall, Jonathan Evans, Adam Fleischer, Jeff Fox, Sherman Johnson, Aaron Kaplowitz, John Krolik, Holly MacKenzie, Ryne Nelson, Chris O’Leary, Ben Osborne, Alan Paul, Susan Price, Sam Rubenstein, Khalid Salaam, Kye Stephenson, Adam Sweeney, Vincent Thomas, Tzvi Twersky, Justin Walsh, Joey Whelan, Eric Woodyard, and Nima Zarrabi.
• Want more of the SLAMonline Top 50? Check out the archive.

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  • rikson

    I dont thin the rules of this list are clear anybody….

  • karan

    d-wade is the best player in the league

  • http://SLAMonline.com J Dizzle

    @christian wells
    Wade is a better defender than Kobe, you say? Let’s see.. Kobe has 7x First and 2x Second All-Defensive Team selections. Wade has 0x First and 2x Second All-Defensive Team selections. That’s right, ZERO First Teams. Where did you get the idea that Wade was ever or will ever be a better defender than Kobe? You we’re wrong in general, but definitely about their defensive skills.

  • Slam Reader

    KObe still should be n.1, because we all owe him for those years when he was the best player in the world but was publicly appreciated…

  • showtimeizback

    Alot of good points. If everyone could i would like that you consider the issue from this point of view.

    1. About this MVP business. Kobe in 03, 06 and 07 had probably the best stats and was most deserving of an MVP. However, having shaq or a bad team would definitely exclude you. Same as lebron in 07 and 08. same as wade in 09. i dont want to get into whose individual performances were better, because they all excelled at what they did and carried there very sub par teams to about the same number of wins. kobes team was always a 7 seed compared to lebron and wade cuz of being in the western conference. with their teams being bad, between the three of them, they only have one win over a actual good team, lebron beating the pistons (who were dismanteled the next season). kobe had a game 7 vs the 60 win suns. Wades MVP will come.

  • http://sixers.com 360vue

    the REAL mvp last season.

  • showtimeizback

    2. the olympics. Wade was easily the best player on the olympic team. Melo was the best player the year before. i feel like their games are more suited for the olympics. it is a little harder for kobe and bron to dominate off the ball. especially kobe. wade played 6th man and had the ball alt as kobe, bron, and melo were off the court at that point. lebron and wade also get to the rim and against the softer euro defense were able to do that early and often, upping there field goal percentage as opposed to kobe who was primarily shooting jumpers. His poor play had NOTHING to do with his his finger. Maybe he was tired from the finals, but he still played poorly. however, he did come up big when the game was up for grabs. I am not sure why people dont think spain could have won, they definitely could have. they had all the momentum, and all of our players looked confused, not scared, but confused as if they didnt understand how this team was keeping up. also down the stretch, it wasnt just kobes hot shooting. he had his hand in all but 2 of the points until we were back up by a good amount. i think like 15 (dont quote me). he was making assist and plays. if we dont have him we lose. without wade and lebron and the other guys except boozer, we are never in that place to begin with. i also dont think kobe would have deferred to anyone else so kudos to wade and lebron for deferring to him.

  • showtimeizback

    3. 2009-10 performance. As i alluded to in my previous post, bron, kobe, and wade all have different styles of play. Wade is as someone else mentioned a combination of bron and kobe. it is true as kobe turns 31 and had been to the finals 6 times and in the playoffs every year but 1 that he is slowing down. driving to the rack less. wade and bron are in their athletic primes. that being said, kobe is still better than everyone else except those 2. now into the who is better debate, 2010 couldnt carry a weaker team like wade or lebron could right now. it just couldnt happen, and if it did, that effort would severely shorten his career (aiming for the jordan like 35-36 still playing). 03 to 07 kobe could, i think he could have beaten atlanta. i digress, lebron and wade would definitely carry the heat to a higher wins total than kobe could. however the heat wouldnt suck with kobe. they would still make the playoffs. lets not be too hasty. now this doesnt necessarily mean that on a good team, where they dont have to be good every night that wade/bron would do better than kobe. on the cavs, kobe could probably get about the same win total as lebron. wade would too. on the lakers, wade could probably get the same win total as kobe, i dont even think bron could cuz of they style with which the lakers play. so over the course of 82 games lebron/wade to me are going to be better than kobe. however for 1 game, or even 1 series, i would say kobe is still the best. also, i would say kobe is a bigger asset to a good team than lebron. lebron is a bigger asset for a bad team (knicks???) than kobe. wade as his style is, is in between. thats it from me.

  • Swedish Mooze

    It was Tweeting that got Beasley caught with weed in the first place… Wade’s a beast.

  • Frank

    This List is very good i would put wade on 1 or 2 Lebron is a great player but he has yet out shined wade out of (Carmelo , Wade , Lebron) Wade has done so many things just by this he has been to the playoffs more than both of them. he has a ring and not only that but he is a great all around player for his height he does so many thing that not even the taller players can do. I mean he has had injury’s and many set backs but always shines. I say can be one the guy has earned the respect.
    but back on Wade and Lebron if last year the heat were to win a couple of more games wade would have been the MVP. In all great list and also people lets be realistic NBA is full of stars that u can never predict who will certain title…..

  • Da Hood

    Quietly the BEST PLAYER In DA WORLD!!!! Team is trash and has to do so much is y he wont get love he deserves.

  • Myles Stedman

    hmm. i know dwayne wade used to be good back in ’06 when the heat won, but i don’t think i’ve seen him showing up since ’07. maybe cause the heat are digging themselves holes and getting worse, but d-wade is incredibley talented and should maybe try and focus on better defence, because that’s where the heat are falling for me.

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