Dwyane Wade vs. Carmelo Anthony: Who's the Better Player?

Last week, during halftime of Game Two of the Eastern Conference Finals matchup between the Orlando Magic and the Cleveland Cavaliers, TNT analysts Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith were discussing both the Eastern and Western Finals matchups. They proceeded to discuss the rise of the Denver Nuggets and how they transformed into a better team since the deal for Chauncey Billups. They also attributed a lot of the Nuggets success to the play of Carmelo Anthony.

Both Smith and Barkley commented on how Anthony had stepped up his game, evolved into a better player, and elevated into one of the best scorers in the NBA. They said that Anthony moved up to the ranks of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James when it came to scoring talent. Then Sir Charles said Carmelo Anthony had surpassed Dwyane Wade as the better scorer and better overall player.

While Kenny Smith and the other TNT analysts debated that comment, none of them actually refuted it completely. This comment angered and upset me and fueled me to write an article debating the issue: Who is the better player: Dwyane Wade or Carmelo Anthony?

Kobe Bryant is a better player than Dwyane Wade: Fair statement. LeBron James is a better player than Dwyane Wade: Fair statement. Carmelo Anthony is a better player than Dwyane Wade: Wait just one minute. Since when is that a fair statement?

Carmelo is an outstanding basketball player. He was the No. 3 overall pick back in the 2003 draft. He is an excellent scorer, a great driver, an above-average defender, a good rebounder, and a decent shooter. He has the ability to take over a game with his scoring and has the ability to light up opposing teams with 40-point efforts. He has also made the playoffs every year that he has been in the league. There is no question that Anthony is a top 10 player in the NBA and a highly coveted player by all teams when his contract is up in 2010.

Then there is Dwyane Wade. He is also a phenomenal player. He was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2003 draft. He is a prolific scorer, a stellar defender, a great passer, a great shooter from inside the arc, and a good rebounder. He also has the ability to score at will and take over games with high-octane scoring efforts. In addition, his ability to drive to the rim is like no other. Also, D-Wade has made it to the postseason every year he has been in the league besides the 2007-2008 season. Like Anthony, Wade will also be a highly coveted free agent when his contract is up in 2010.

Looking at the previous two paragraphs, both Anthony and Wade look like similar players with similar strengths. Based on those facts, it might be hard to distinguish the two players and truly say who is the better player. But, if you take a closer look, it is clear that Dwyane Wade is the superior player and that Carmelo Anthony takes a backseat to his draft class counterpart.

Right off the bat, Wade has something that Anthony doesn't: A championship ring. Wade's Miami Heat won the 2006 NBA title with Wade being named the Finals MVP. In just Wade's third year as a pro, he elevated to the top of the basketball world and became the 5th youngest player in NBA history to win the award.

If a championship and Finals MVP award aren't enough to separate the two, let's look at Wade's long list of accomplishments. He is a five-time NBA All-Star, an Olympic gold-medalist, and the 2006 Sportsman of the Year. He is a member of the All-NBA First Team (2009), a two-time All-NBA Second Team member (2005,06), and an All-NBA Third Team member (2007). In addition, he has made the All-NBA defensive team twice (2005, 2009), as well as being a two-time Playstation Skills Champion, which he won back-to-back in 2006 and 2007.

On top of all those accolades, he added a lot to his resume in 2009. He was the NBA scoring champion this year with 30.2 points per game. He also became the Miami Heat's all-time leading scorer, surpassing franchise legend Alonzo Mourning. He was a two-time Eastern Conference Player of the Month, a three-time Eastern Conference Player of the Week, and finished third in the voting for both the Most Valuable Player Award and the Defensive Player of the Year Award.

While you might be thinking that these accomplishments are all offense-oriented, you must know that Wade became the first player in NBA history that is 6'4" or shorter to block 100 shots in a season. Need more defensive stats? Wade became the only player in the league to amass at least 100 blocks and 100 steals in a season.

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