All-time lists are subjective, but some things are etched in stone. It's difficult to find a rational fan who doesn't have LeBron James or Michael Jordan as their GOAT (sorry, Kobe fans). While I took a jab at the irrational fans of the Black Mamba who have him in the goat conversation, Kobe Bryant is still undoubtedly the second-best shooting guard to lace up.
For years, Dwyane Wade rounded out the top-three shooting guards list. Again, this is a subjective conversation, but the consensus is Wade at three. He'd passed up the greats like Allen Iverson, Clyde Drexler, Vince Carter, and Tracy McGrady with a legendary postseason run and more rings than the others combined.
But here came James Harden. At his peak, Harden was a scoring machine who could lead the league in assists. Harden has prolific regular-season scoring numbers that only Wilt Chamberlain can match.
So many times during Harden's electrifying 36.1 points per game season (2019), we'd see him on a list with Chamberlain. You'd think that level of scoring would translate to the playoffs, but it hasn't. That's where the comparison between Wade and Harden gets fuzzy for the Beard supporters. Wade consistently rises to the occasion at his best, while Harden has faltered every time.
Harden's recent Game 7 collapse isn't the end-all be-all of the Wade debate. It's just another layer to Harden's postseason struggles. Harden is comparable to some of the best when you run the numbers, but the context reminds you that he's never done what they've done.
James Harden's postseason failures put him in rare air
Harden has surpassed the great two-guards of the past, like Iverson and Drexler. Harden consistently led teams to 50-plus wins in the brutal Western Conference —the regular season production was flat-out outrageous.
Iverson had an iconic playoff run in 2001, and Drexler ultimately became a winner beside Hakeem Olajuwon, but Harden has won more playoff series as the guy compared to Iverson, and neither Clyde nor Harden won the Larry O as the best player.
The same can't be said for D-Wade. Wade had one of the standout series of the century coming back from 0-2 against the Dallas Mavericks in 2006. At 24 years old, Wade averaged 39 points over the last four games to bring Miami to glory. It doesn't get more clutch than that.
Wade went on to stack regular-season numbers, a scoring title, and All-NBA and All-Defense selections. Wade played both sides of the ball and is arguably the best shot-blocking guard to do it. Wade sacrificed individual stats when LeBron came to town and stacked two more rings.
Harden has never made that sacrifice or had notable clutch moments in the postseason—quite the contrary. One could argue Harden is the most unclutch superstar in league history. Wade has legendary clutch moments, and Harden has classic choke jobs (Harden's list of teammates disqualifies him from the "I had no help" arguments, by the way).
Many point to the Rockets' missing 27-straight 3-pointers in 2018 against the stacked Golden State Warriors as a stain on Harden's resume. It's a blip because a star paint penetrator like Wade would've attacked the cup if he were in that position, but those Warriors teams were pure greatness, and Harden was without Chris Paul.
I point to his 2017 collapse against the Kawhi Leonardless San Antonio Spurs. Harden scored 10 points, shooting 2-11 from the floor, in a Game 6 mopping. There were possessions in the blowout where Harden looked disengaged from the game. He had more turnovers than field goals made in that. It was far from the only time that's occurred in Harden's playoff career.
Keep in mind that this is one of Harden's MVP runner-up years. He's near the peak of his powers, going out in non-superstar fashion with Kawhi sidelined.
We could point to Harden's not showing up against Wade in Harden's lone finals appearance. You could bring up Harden's age factoring into his poor performance, but Wade was already a budding star leading his team when he was young.
Harden and Paul had Golden State on the ropes when Durant went down in 2019, but those playoff demons came peeking again. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson continued their playoff dominance against the Rockets as underdogs vs the Rockets. This series hurt the "we win with a healthy Chris Paul" case Rockets fans would make after missing a gazillion 3s in a row. Harden was still without a legendary postseason run. And still is.
Harden's postseason woes have continued as he exited his prime. His longevity is something to admire. Wade wasn't the floor general on a playoff team at age 35. Kudos to Harden for his longevity and bonkers stats. But the big moments? Those aren't Harden's strong suits.
The last five times he's been sent home are filled with single-digit outputs and low-shot attempts. He's not the type of star who makes his name in the legacy-building portion of the year—the antithesis of Dwyane Wade.
Wade was a monster in the regular season (especially in 2009), but he doesn't have an MVP or the amount of first-team All-NBA's Harden has. Wade doesn't have the longevity Hardens has. But with the money on the table, at their best, Wade is the star most would want.
The two-way player who snatched moments from other greats will be remembered as the greater player. Moments matter, and Wade has the movie-ending ones, while Harden doesn't and seemingly won't ever have.