Harden, Howard weigh in on Durant and Wade
By Steve Bunin
The Kevin Durant vs. Dwyane Wade social media battle became a national story over the last few days, after SI.com failed to put James Harden on its list of top-10 players in the NBA (ranking Harden 11th and Wade eighth) .
Asked about the list, Durant told a reporter Harden belongs in the top 10. Asked who he should replace, Durant immediately responded, “Dwyane Wade.”
But Wade responded on Instagram:
"Kevin Durant said James Harden should replace me in the Top 10... Note to self* Make him respect your place in history ... again"
To which, Durant tweeted: "Show me don't tweet me.."
Today at Toyota Center, I asked both Dwight Howard and Harden himself for their take on the spat and where Harden belongs in the hierarchy of NBA elite. Both of them thought it was a legitimate beef - not some prank or fabricated debate to spur interest in any product or themselves.
Harden’s response: “That's how KD felt. He felt that way.” Q: How do you feel? Are you a top10 player? Harden: "For sure. For sure. Last year, I had a chance to prove it. Kind of broke out of my shell a little bit."
Howard’s response: “I think it's real. What I told James is, stay away from it. We do our talking on the floor. We'll play both those teams, and when we do, show them who's the best shooting guard in the world.”
Q: What do you think? Do you think he's a top 10 player? Howard: “No doubt. He has the ability to be one of the best shooting guards to ever play the game.”
By the way, here’s SI.com’s top-15, in reverse order:
20-16: Kyrie Irving, Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge, Chris Bosh, Dirk Nowitzki.
15-11: Stephen Curry, Marc Gasol, Kevin Love, Derrick Rose, James Harden.
10-6: Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan.
5-1: Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, LeBron James.
By Steve Bunin
The Kevin Durant vs. Dwyane Wade social media battle became a national story over the last few days, after SI.com failed to put James Harden on its list of top-10 players in the NBA (ranking Harden 11th and Wade eighth) .
Asked about the list, Durant told a reporter Harden belongs in the top 10. Asked who he should replace, Durant immediately responded, “Dwyane Wade.”
But Wade responded on Instagram:
"Kevin Durant said James Harden should replace me in the Top 10... Note to self* Make him respect your place in history ... again"
To which, Durant tweeted: "Show me don't tweet me.."
Today at Toyota Center, I asked both Dwight Howard and Harden himself for their take on the spat and where Harden belongs in the hierarchy of NBA elite. Both of them thought it was a legitimate beef - not some prank or fabricated debate to spur interest in any product or themselves.
Harden’s response: “That's how KD felt. He felt that way.” Q: How do you feel? Are you a top10 player? Harden: "For sure. For sure. Last year, I had a chance to prove it. Kind of broke out of my shell a little bit."
Howard’s response: “I think it's real. What I told James is, stay away from it. We do our talking on the floor. We'll play both those teams, and when we do, show them who's the best shooting guard in the world.”
Q: What do you think? Do you think he's a top 10 player? Howard: “No doubt. He has the ability to be one of the best shooting guards to ever play the game.”
By the way, here’s SI.com’s top-15, in reverse order:
20-16: Kyrie Irving, Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge, Chris Bosh, Dirk Nowitzki.
15-11: Stephen Curry, Marc Gasol, Kevin Love, Derrick Rose, James Harden.
10-6: Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan.
5-1: Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, LeBron James.
