Dwyane Wade Gets Honest About Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Winning MVP

Most basketball fans and analysts would contend that Dwyane Wade ranks among the NBA‘s all-time greats and belongs on a list of the top 10 guards in the league’s history.

D-Wade, who starred for the Miami Heat for the majority of his 16-year career, achieved three championships in South Beach alongside fellow stars Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Bosh, and LeBron James.

He claimed the NBA Finals MVP Award in 2006 and was a 13-time NBA All-Star during that legendary career. In 2021, he was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, featuring the top 75 players in NBA history, and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2023.

However, one award Wade never won in his career was the NBA Most Valuable Player award, which Shai Gilgeous-Alexander just claimed for his second-straight season. Wade shared his thoughts on SGA’s honor, but also sounded off about “uncomfortable conversations” about his spot on all-time great lists.

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During “The Timeout” podcast, Wade said that winning an award like MVP is never truly done individually, as teammates are part of it. He praised SGA for recognizing his OKC teammates during his acceptance speech and for giving them gifts to show his appreciation, and said he would never have won the award without them.

“He earned this. He has entered into a conversation, and I think Jay Will put out a tweet that said ‘Now it’s about to be some uncomfortable conversations that needs to happen,'” Wade said. “And you [expletive] right it will be, because whenever you box somebody into the conversation, you gotta take somebody out.”

“And you know what. I know one thing. I know my name’s gonna come up because they always try to take me out of [expletive],” Wade said, adding, “He’s in the conversation with some of the greats to ever play this game, so salute to this young man.”

Earlier this week, FS1’s Nick Wright ranked SGA as the ninth-best guard in NBA history, which was one spot behind Wade on his list. He also said if Gilgeous-Alexander wins a second-straight championship with the Thunder this year, he would move up to fifth on his list of the all-time greatest guards.

Those MVP awards certainly hit different and have catapulted SGA into the discussions of all-time greats. There’s a possibility that the Thunder star could eventually find himself in that debate of all-time greats, along with LeBron James and Michael Jordan, each of whom won four or more NBA titles.

King James won four NBA MVP awards, while MJ won five. With his second award, Gilgeous-Alexander joined those two legends and others on the list of back-to-back MVP winners.

SGA is already facing a tough battle to claim his second. On Monday night, Victor Wembanyama achieved a historic performance in an epic double-overtime win by the San Antonio Spurs to take a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals.

If OKC can get past this dominant force and hungry Spurs team, it will likely be thanks to SGA’s contributions, including his efficient shooting and playmaking.

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This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 7:12 PM.