Jalen Rose showed Paul Pierce how much better Dwyane Wade's career was after he claimed to be better than the Miami Heat legend.
The late 2000s were an incredible era of basketball in the NBA, with some of the biggest names the game has ever seen in the league at the same time. Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and Paul Pierce were all tearing the league up among a litany of other stars.
This led to a lot of rivalries in the Eastern Conference in particular. Dwyane Wade was with the Miami Heat for all of that era, while Paul Pierce was with the Boston Celtics. And the two shared a big rivalry throughout that time, which manifested itself in quite a few playoff series. Ultimately, Dwyane Wade won 3 championships and Pierce managed only one, but the two both cemented their legacies as NBA legends.
Paul Pierce Was Brutally Checked By Jalen Rose After Saying He Was Better Than Dwyane Wade
One of the clips that have become a matter of NBA legend is Paul Pierce claiming to be better than Dwyane Wade. What makes it more iconic is the brutal manner in which Jalen Rose destroyed him for saying that.
"He's made All-NBA First Team twice, Paul hasn't done it. He made All-NBA 8 times to your 4, he made an All-Defensive team 3 times to your 0, he won 1 scoring title, you weren't able to win a scoring title, and he has 3 rings while you only have 1."
This is brutal, especially the commentary from the host at the back. And when laid down like that, the facts make it clear that Wade did enjoy a better career than Pierce. But the Truth had his logic as to what made him better.
Paul Pierce Spoke About Why He Was Better Than Dwyane Wade
While objectively, Dwyane Wade's career was better, Paul Pierce did once make some salient points as to why he was better than the Miami legend.
"That’s easy! I can say that off the bat. That’s me. If you give me Shaq, if you give me LeBron ... If you give me these guys earlier in my career ... When I was 24 years old, if you give me Shaq. When I'm 24 or 25 you give me LeBron and Bosh, I'd be sitting on five or six championships. Easy."
This logic isn't too good because any great player in the NBA can say this. And Paul Pierce did have Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen next to him for a long time, but they couldn't win more than one championship. Paul Pierce is undisputedly great, but it's safe to say that Dwyane Wade was better.
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