Wade vs Lebron

[zmac]

I have nothin at all against Wade, in fact hes one of my fav playas but..
for the record, here are their stats:

Rookie Year
Wade:
RPG: 4.0
APG: 4.5
SPG: 1.41
BPG: .56
TO: 3.21
PF: 2.30
PPG: 16.2


LeBron:
RPG: 5.5
APG: 5.9
SPG: 1.65
BPG: .73
TO: 3.46
PF: 1.90
PPG: 20.9


Soph Year
Wade:
RPG: 5.2
APG: 6.8
SPG: 1.57
BPG: 1.06
TO: 4.17
PF: 3.00
PPG: 24.1


LeBron:
RPG: 7.40
APG: 7.2
SPG: 2.21
BPG: .65
TO: 3.28
PF: 1.80
PPG: 27.2




I say no more......

[Matthew]

I have nothin at all against Wade, in fact hes one of my fav playas but..
for the record, here are their stats:

Rookie Year
Wade:
RPG: 4.0
APG: 4.5
SPG: 1.41
BPG: .56
TO: 3.21
PF: 2.30
PPG: 16.2


LeBron:
RPG: 5.5
APG: 5.9
SPG: 1.65
BPG: .73
TO: 3.46
PF: 1.90
PPG: 20.9


Soph Year
Wade:
RPG: 5.2
APG: 6.8
SPG: 1.57
BPG: 1.06
TO: 4.17
PF: 3.00
PPG: 24.1


LeBron:
RPG: 7.40
APG: 7.2
SPG: 2.21
BPG: .65
TO: 3.28
PF: 1.80
PPG: 27.2




I say no more......

Stats are fairly even... although Lebron does have the advantage in every category, but Wade has been to the second round and the conference finals in 2 seasons. Not Bad.

But here's while I'll take James (and even Anthony) over him: Wade has been the second option in both of his seasons. Behind Odom in his first, and shaq in his second. Lebron has made Zydrunus an all star again, made gooden look like a player with potential after that disasterous 2004 campaign, and done all that while carrying the scoring load. Melo has been to the playoffs twice (in his rookie year, that denver team would have beaten new orleans in the first round too) and made Camby and Miller look like studs. Melo is a winner, and the same goes for wade. But Melo has shown he can lead a team and carry them, Wade really hasnt proven that yet becuase he isnt the best player on his team, and he is also yet to show me he can make his teamates better.

He will though. Right now though, if you were to redo the NBA draft, you'd have to think it would go 1) James, 2) Wade, 3) Melo, 51) Darko.

[The X]

nah....although you're obviously joking about Darko, he wouldn't go that low....

here is the re-draft, based on team needs and future etc....

1. Cleveland - James
2. Detroit - Bosh (they would go big)
3. Denver - Wade
4. Toronto - Melo

[Matthew]

He'd be a late lottery pick... not a top 3 selection though.

That's an interesting list. I wonder if that had been the selections, would Detroit had still traded for Rasheed? And if so, would they have been anywhere near the team they were the past 2 seasons with bosh? The obvious answer is no, but remember Bosh has played really well the past two seasons.

Here's another question, if Denver had still taken melo, with bosh going second, would toronto have taken wade? And if so, would he have ignited vince and formed a lethal duo?

One more what if: If Memphis hadn't have made that otis thorpe trade and kept their selection, would they have taken darko, melo, or wade?

So many questions

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

Cleveland - James
2. Detroit - Wade (they wouldn't pass him up knowing what we know now, even if Rip and Chauncey filled the backcourt spots. Maybe DWade would need more time to shine if he found himself in Detroit, but eventually he would)
3. Denver - Melo
4. Toronto - Bosh
5. Miami - Kirk Hinrich
6. LA Clippers - Josh Howard
7. Chicago - Mickeal Pietrus
8. Milwaukee - TJ Ford (he's still a mystery...)
9. New York - Chris Kaman ( another mystery...)
10. Washington - Darko Milicic ( he's not dead yet... )

[The X]

He'd be a late lottery pick... not a top 3 selection though.

That's an interesting list. I wonder if that had been the selections, would Detroit had still traded for Rasheed? And if so, would they have been anywhere near the team they were the past 2 seasons with bosh? The obvious answer is no, but remember Bosh has played really well the past two seasons.

Here's another question, if Denver had still taken melo, with bosh going second, would toronto have taken wade? And if so, would he have ignited vince and formed a lethal duo?

One more what if: If Memphis hadn't have made that otis thorpe trade and kept their selection, would they have taken darko, melo, or wade?

So many questions

yep, some interesting thoughts then....it just goes to show you that one pick has a domino effect on not only other picks, but the fate of the team's future

you're probably right on Pistons not winning it all with Bosh, even though Bosh is good....it was a tossup between Melo and Wade for Denver, but they probably still would have taken Melo either way....and Toronto might have taken Hinrich as they had too many swingmen, and not many people viewed Wade as a PG....which puts Wade back in Miami....fate perhaps....and that otis thorpe trade to memphis was terrible from the moment it was made

[Matthew]

Ok, since we're doing lists, heres a post mock draft:
1) Lebron - cleveland
2) Wade (although x brings up a great point about bosh..) detroit
3. Melo - denver
4. Bosh - toronto
5. Kirk - miami
6. Luke Ridnour (they were very willing to let andre miller walk) clippers
7. TJ Ford - chicago
8. Nick Collison (you saw how they jumped for bogut) - bucks
9. Darko (The new fredrick weis...) new york
10. Pietrus- wizards
11. Josh Howard - warriors
12. Kyle Korver - seattle (this team loves shooters)
13. Chris Kaman - jerry west usually takes the best available player.

[J@3]

Interesting list... I reckon Howard would go before Pietrus just because he's proved himself a bit more.

[fgrep15]

I don't agree that Melo is making Camby and Miller look like studs. Miller has actually looked better when he was a Cav, and both those guys are just as important to the team success as Carmelo is.

Also with Wade, he's the only one out of the three who is actually a good defender. Carmelo and Lebron are both pretty bad defenders, though Lebron is good at getting steals, his man to man defense is dismall.

About Wade carrying a team, like Melo, in college he was carrying his team too, when he was a rookie, the Heat were most succesful when he was playing, and during the season he was the best player if not for injuries. In the playoffs, he showed how good he was, and was the reason the Heat went to the second round, and gave Indiana such a battle.

This year, when Shaq was out, he was amazing, and against the Wizards in the playoffs, he carried the team to victory singlehandedly. Even against the Nets, Shaq was injured, and unable to play to his full potential. Wade was the first option on the team all of the playoffs, and against the Wizards and Pistons, he was recieving double teams 27 feet away from the basket.

[EGarrett]

This year, when Shaq was out, he was amazing, and against the Wizards in the playoffs, he carried the team to victory singlehandedly. Even against the Nets, Shaq was injured, and unable to play to his full potential. Wade was the first option on the team all of the playoffs, and against the Wizards and Pistons, he was recieving double teams 27 feet away from the basket.

Wade is a devastating scorer, and he took care of the Wizards. But Shaq was the primary weapon against the Pistons. Detroit's the best defensive team in the league, and he turned them into swiss cheese when he got the ball. That got Haslem, Butler and Jones all those open shots...and let everyone be relatively fresh for those fourth quarter runs they went on.

This isn't to knock Wade. Like I said, he dismantled the Wizards and is awesome with the ball. But when Shaq was able to play, their offense usually centered around him.

I also think Lebron is clearly the better prospect than Wade (and pretty much everyone else to come out of the draft in the last 8 years). But Melo isn't on the same level as either of them.

[fgrep15]

I agree Lebron is the best prospect. Right now Wade is as good or a better player, but IMO, as soon as Lebron improves his defense to a respectable level, and continues to improve his game, he will be the better player, and likely the best in the league along with maybe Amare till someone else comes along.

[beau_boy04]

Matthew,

You said Wade hasn't proven that he can lead the team and win games? I wonder who took care of the Wizards and Nets this past post-season then? because in the mayority it was Wade and not Shaq.

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

I wonder who took care of the Wizards and Nets this past post-season then? because in the mayority it was Wade and not Shaq.

Not everything is about stats... Is it any wonder that almost every player that jumps from a Shaq-less team to the team Shaq plays in, sees a significant increase in his numbers provided he logs similar amount of minutes... Lat's face it, the mere presence of O'Neal was enough to give DWade more than enough room to work. If he had a legitimate 3 point range and consistency from beyond, Dwyane could average close to 30ppg. Most of them because of the Beast taking care of the paint.

[Andrew]

With the way James was playing at the end of the season (or perhaps I should say, forced to play) he's taken on too much of the blame for the Cavaliers' meltdown. Sure, he has to accept some responsibility but they were playoff bound before internal turmoil stemming from the front office placed them at a disadvantage, not to mention the fact that ultimately basketball is a team game and Wade is part of a much better team.

Right now, I don't think you could go wrong with either one of them. There are areas in which they could both improve, but they are easily two of the brightest stars and I think most would agree two of the best players in the league right now.