Who was quicker and more athletic than prime D Wade?

DS17 · Post #1 » by **DS17** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 6:20 am

Maybe D rose? Westbrook? MJ?/

Fade_awayJ · Post #2 » by **Fade_awayJ** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 6:38 am

KyRo23 · Post #3 » by **KyRo23** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 6:39 am

Fade_awayJ wrote:

Not the greatest gif to say he's more athletic than Wade, even though I think he is.

I saw better dunks in this summer league :lol:

DirtyDez · Post #4 » by **DirtyDez** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 6:42 am

Westbrook was as athletic/explosive but not as coordinated/smooth. Rose was closer to Wade in that regard but not as smooth with the step backs and Euro steps. I would say peak Wade is the closest to young MJ in terms of the full package physically. MJ was the rare breed of God level athleticism, coordination and mechanics. I would say peak Wade was 15% less than MJ in those aspects. Up to around 2011 Wade could do whatever he wanted on a basketball court when healthy from an athleticism/skills standpoint.

GregOden · Post #5 » by **GregOden** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 7:34 am

DirtyDez wrote:Westbrook was as athletic/explosive but not as coordinated/smooth. Rose was closer to Wade in that regard but not as smooth with the step backs and Euro steps. I would say peak Wade is the closest to young MJ in terms of the full package physically. MJ was the rare breed of God level athleticism, coordination and mechanics. I would say peak Wade was 15% less than MJ in those aspects. Up to around 2011 Wade could do whatever he wanted on a basketball court when healthy from an athleticism/skills standpoint.

Westbrook is a good comp for Wade, who, along with Monta Ellis, had terrible combine measurements, barely managed 30-some inch verticals, and had average end-to-end speed in the gym compared to their draft class, yet when you give them the ball in-game they were absolute athletic beasts.

MrGoat · Post #6 » by **MrGoat** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 9:58 am

I'm not sure there has been a player quite as quick and athletic as David Thompson since. Thanks to his coke problem he's pretty much forgotten though. Guy was generously listed at 6' 4" and could grab a quarter off the top of the backboard, was nicknamed Skywalker because of the kind of hangtime he had in the air and was always a threat for a massive chase down block despite his size and averaged over a block a game in four of his first five seasons. MJ even admits he tried to emulate his dunking style because he was the most electric player to watch in the 70s

SNPA · Post #7 » by **SNPA** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 9:59 am

KyRo23 wrote:
Fade_awayJ wrote:

Not the greatest gif to say he's more athletic than Wade, even though I think he is.

I saw better dunks in this summer league

Link please.

Lockdown504090 · Post #8 » by **Lockdown504090** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 10:21 am

Fade_awayJ wrote:

The way he can make body contact while still packing the ball and holding the guy off with his left hand is pretty damn crazy. Mike has some pretty nuts measurements.

dolphinatik · Post #9 » by **dolphinatik** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 10:44 am

Drose for sure, westbrook, shawn marion. To me though Wade was faster and more athletic before he his his prime. Those first few seasons wathcing him play live you can see why Shaq called him flash. By the time he hit his prime he already changed his game but his fastest years were probably the Odom years.

DrCoach · Post #10 » by **DrCoach** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:19 pm

Iverson

cam24thomas · Post #11 » by **cam24thomas** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:30 pm

Sometimes people only think of 90s Jordan. They forget 80s Jordan existed, and that's a completely different animal to anything we've seen since....

rand · Post #12 » by **rand** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:40 pm

Nate Robinson

Watch on YouTube

Ito · Post #13 » by **Ito** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:45 pm

His teammate, Lebron James

CometGM · Post #14 » by **CometGM** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:47 pm

Westbrook > straight line athleticism.
Rose > more herky jerky explosiveness
Iverson > fastest period and fastest with the ball

Wade > full package but a little less of each above

wadenation305 · Post #15 » by **wadenation305** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:52 pm

Lockdown504090 wrote:
Fade_awayJ wrote:

The way he can make body contact while still packing the ball and holding the guy off with his left hand is pretty damn crazy. Mike has some pretty nuts measurements.

Watch on YouTube

wadenation305 · Post #16 » by **wadenation305** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 1:59 pm

Watch on YouTube

For those who don't know Wade, or only saw Father Prime, not The Flash. The dude was special, and what got me into basketball in the first palce.

Ring_Me · Post #17 » by **Ring_Me** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 2:07 pm

CometGM wrote:Westbrook > straight line athleticism.
Rose > more herky jerky explosiveness
Iverson > fastest period and fastest with the ball

Wade > full package but a little less of each above

Iverson was never fast. He was just shifty. Westbrook is more explosive in traffic. Rose is both combined.

DarkAzcura · Post #18 » by **DarkAzcura** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 2:13 pm

KyRo23 wrote:
Fade_awayJ wrote:

Not the greatest gif to say he's more athletic than Wade, even though I think he is.

I saw better dunks in this summer league

Not sure what you are seeing, but that is probably one of the better dunks I’ve seen in a long time, lol. Jumping from what appears slightly outside the side of the paint, to body contact through one player, and then avoiding the hand of the second player. That was incredibly impressive, and I don’t think there was anything in summer league that was nearly as impressive. The body control is insane in that GIF.

Meat · Post #19 » by **Meat** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 2:32 pm

Drose

Cubbies2120 · Post #20 » by **Cubbies2120** » Tue Aug 8, 2023 2:44 pm

wadenation305 wrote:
Lockdown504090 wrote:
Fade_awayJ wrote:

The way he can make body contact while still packing the ball and holding the guy off with his left hand is pretty damn crazy. Mike has some pretty nuts measurements.

Watch on YouTube

Lol not remotely close to the same level of dunk.

Wade running 'downhill' with a full court to get momentum vs. one defender who was backing up

vs.

Jordan having a much smaller window to accelerate, having to contort his body because there's two defenders to work with instead of one. Not only that but it looks like he had just beaten a THIRD defender off the dribble, whereas when Wade was driving it was the parting of the red sea :lol:

poor Varejao had zero help there to slow Wade's momentum.

Don't get me wrong Wade's dunk was one of the best posters of the decade, but if we're talking athleticism (not just power), Jordan's dunk >>>