Dwyane Wade might have just stumbled onto a clever little loophole in the endless GOAT debate. But, as the word implies, it’s a loophole, really only helping the younger crowd, Wade’s generation and those after him. For the folks who actually saw Michael Jordan soar through the air live on the court, there’s no shortcut, no clever twist, just the memory of that iconic jump, etched forever in basketball history. Ask them who the GOAT is, and the answer remains the same.

On a recent episode of The Timeout with Dwyane Wade, the man tactfully navigated the ever-heated debate. He said, “Michael Jordan is my basketball goat. My personally. For all the reasons that he should be. I do have a new answer of the way I’m going to start answering the question when people ask me. I’m going to say Michael Jordan is the greatest player I’ve ever watched. He is the greatest player I have watched. LeBron James is the greatest player I’ve ever seen.” Pause for a moment and let that sink in; Wade is drawing a subtle line between watching greatness and experiencing it firsthand.

The Heat legend elaborated further, “It clicked to me one night, and I was like, I never saw Michael Jordan. I watched Michael Jordan. I’ve seen LeBron James up close. I played against him, I played with him. I’ve never seen, personally, a greater basketball player, but I’ve watched a great basketball player. And so to me, it’s just a difference. And it’s not, the GOAT debate will forever be a debate. It’s not going anywhere.”

D-Wade’s words remind us that context can change the entire perspective.

Wade and LeBron James go way back, like, 2003 waiting-in-line-for-the-NBA-combine back. The kid from Akron and the Chicago native instantly clicked, bonding over shared dreams. That friendship carried over into their professional careers, with LeBron joining him in Miami from 2010 to 2014 and the opposite happening in Cleveland in 2017-18. “D-Wade has been my guy since we came into the league,” James once said. 

On the court, their chemistry was undeniable. James and Wade first faced each other on struggling teams: Roll back to November 2003. Cavs 2-5, Heat 0-7, but even then, sparks flew. The Akron Hammer poured in 18 points with seven assists. Wade responded with 14 points and matching assists. Their early individual successes foreshadowed the championship runs ahead. When the Heat assembled the legendary trio of LeBron, Wade, and Chris Bosh, opponents didn’t stand a chance!

On the court, LeBron has racked up achievements that make Wade’s ‘seen greatness’ argument hard to dispute. At 40, turning 41 next month, James is still the NBA’s top scorer, and he debuted this season after missing the first 14 games because of sciatica. Wade commented on the LA veteran’s current playstyle, saying, “This style of play they are playing without LeBron excites everybody, because it’s the future. [But] you are not better without him.”

LeBron’s longevity and consistency are unmatched, spanning 23 NBA seasons and holding the record for the most combined regular-season and playoff games. He became the top scorer in NBA history in 2023 and the first player to surpass 50,000 points combined. Add to that his double-digit scoring streaks, and it’s clear why Wade’s take makes sense: for the younger generation, we are lucky to actually see greatness in motion, not just watch the clips on YouTube.

Dwyane Wade’s generational take on the GOAT debate

Before Wade discovered his loophole, Michael Jordan always topped his GOAT list. Growing up, Jordan was the gateway to basketball itself. He never saw Magic Johnson or Larry Bird live in the ’80s, but the Bulls legend shaped his understanding of the game. Yet LeBron’s good pal isn’t blind to the passage of time. Years ago, he predicted MJ’s dominance in the conversation wouldn’t last forever: “We’re not gonna be the ones having a conversation about the GOATs. Now it’s going to be the younger, younger, younger generation. They’re gonna forget about Jordan like we forget about Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar].”

Wade frames it as a generational handoff. Fans who grew up idolizing Kareem barely factor into today’s GOAT debates, and Jordan is next in line. He notes that younger fans gravitate toward LeBron, while legends like Kareem, despite his six championships and all-time scoring record, often get overlooked.

We’re 700 words into this story, and we haven’t said Stephen Curry a single time until now. Does that mean he’s not a legend?

Time marches on, stars rise and fall, and the debates inevitably shift. Ten years from now, the next decade of fans will probably be backing Victor Wembanyama on the same scale.