On Friday night, just days before Dwyane Wade officially calls it a career, Paul Pierce was given a chance to compare himself to the Miami Heat legend. Pierce decided to say that, were he in Wade’s shoes in Miami and given a teammate like LeBron James and Shaq, he would have won a lot more that the three titles Wade managed to nab in his career.
There’s a lot to unpack here, and the argument is impossible to really parse. But this is a common theme for Pierce on air — comparing himself and his career to that of another. The comments quickly spread through Basketball Twitter, and even Wade responded when it was all said and done.
Pierce addressed it again on air later, but perhaps the most cognizant response to the whole situation came from Wade’s wife, Gabrielle Union, who tweeted about the situation on Saturday. Union calling it “wrong on many obvious levels” and implored people not to engage in arguments that “diminish” others.
This @paulpierce34 thing is wrong on many obvious levels but what I find most troublesome is this idea of a man trying to diminish another man that looks like him, was raised like him, in order to shine a tad brighter. Shit isnt entertaining, it's sad. ❤ & 💡good people.
— Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) April 6, 2019
We do not have to buy into the notion that there is only so much love, attention, resources, opportunities, respect to go around. This scarcity mindset is a trap. It keeps us all fighting amongst ourselves. Reject that shit.
— Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) April 6, 2019
Union’s point here is clear: trying to take down one person’s accomplishments in order to prop yourself up serves no purpose and is “sad.” More specifically, she wants these kind of arguments to stop. Still, didn’t stopped Wade’s son, Zaire, from weighing in.
Zaire not tolerating any disrespect to his dad’s legacy pic.twitter.com/prMMDRcxgd
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 6, 2019
It’s Pierce’s job to stir the pot on TV, so to speak, so it’s good that this has caused some conversation. But Wade certainly has a lot of supporters in this battle.