“I don’t know all the guys who haven’t won the MVP, so I’m gonna go with myself”: When Dwyane Wade had an amusing reason to pick himself as the best player to never win the MVP

Back in 2021, Dwyane Wade reasoned why he selected himself as the best player out of all the superstars who never won the regular season MVP.

Dwyane Wade is one of the most skillful guards to set foot on the NBA hardwood. Being the fastest player on the floor at any time, “The Flash” was able to get buckets at will, and at the same time would shut down the best player on the defensive end.

Having played 1,054 games in the league, the former Miami Heat legend averaged a staggering 22 points, 5.4 assists, and 4.7 rebounds on 48% shooting from the field over an illustrious 16-year career.

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D-Wade ended his career with a pretty decorated resume – 13 All-Stars selections, 8 All-NBA selections, 3 All-Defensive selections, 1 scoring title, 3 championships, and a Finals MVP.

The only hardware missing from his stacked cabinet is the coveted Maurice Podoloff Trophy. And according to the former two-way guard, he was the best player ever to never win the prestigious MVP award.

Did Dwyane Wade ever deserve the Most Valuable Player honor?

A few months back, D-Wade made an appearance on a WIRED video where he answered a few fans’ questions on Twitter. One of the many intriguing questions was:

Who’s the best player to never win NBA MVP regular season?

I say Dwayne Wade

Giving an honest response, Wade stated that he didn’t know all the players who never won an MVP. Ultimately agreeing with the user @ClayDade, Dwyane said:

“I don’t know all the guys who have not won a NBA regular season MVP. So Clay, I’m gonna go with you, that guy Dwyane Wade.”

It seems strange that Wade, despite being a generational talent, never got his hands on the MVP trophy. During his initial days with Miami, there were a few seasons that he played exceptionally well.

In particular, the 2008-2009 campaign was the one where Dwyane had a real shot at winning the award.

Averaging 30.2 points (led the NBA), 7.5 assists, 5 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game, it was arguably one of the best individual seasons of his career. Unfortunately, the Heat only finished 5th in the Eastern Conference, resulting in Wade finishing 3rd in the voting.

LeBron James (28.4/7.6/7.2), who led the Cavs to a league-best 66-16 record that season, won his first of 4 MVPs. And Kobe Bryant (26.8/5.2/4.9) came in 2nd.

Throughout the course of league history, there have been several legends who failed to win the MVP award. Dominique Wilkins, Isiah Thomas, Patrick Ewing, Dikembe Mutombo, and Chris Paul, among a whole list of distinguished superstars.

Clearly, one has to have a surreal season in order to win the MVP.

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