Irving or Wade: Who is LeBron’s Best Sidekick?

Years removed from “The Decision” that took him to South Beach, NBA fans have seen LeBron James play with the likes of Dwyane Wade and Kyrie Irving as his “second fiddle.” Having seen this Cavalier team at their best, a question begs to answered: Is it Wade or Irving who has best served as LeBron’s sidekick?

The Miami years…

Everyone knew why LeBron left Cleveland to go to Miami in the summer of 2010. He wanted to play with his buddies Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, he wanted to have a better supporting cast, and he wanted to play for an organization that knew how to get him a championship.  When he left, everyone was wondering how sharing a backcourt with Wade would work out. Both Wade and James were essentially the same player: a ball-dominant wing who liked to be seen as the best player on the floor.

The question loomed: Would Wade try to be “the man” in Miami and make LeBron try to assimilate to a new role on “his” team? Or would Wade would take a step back and defer to LeBron who was clearly the better player at that point in their careers?

Luckily for the Heat, the latter is what happened, partly because Wade saw his role needed to change and partly because his ailing knees dictated it to him.

Whatever the case, it worked out for both players because they went to four straight NBA Finals together and won two of them.  During his four years in Miami, LeBron was essentially “Batman” and Wade was “Robin.” LeBron won the NBA MVP award twice during his time with the Heat and won the NBA Finals MVP both years that the Heat won it all.

To his credit, Wade was able to adapt to his new role and be a complement to LeBron.  He gave up touches and domination of the ball for the overall good of the team, but he definitely still had his moments where he had huge games or hit a big shot to grab a piece of the spotlight.  He did a great job playing with LeBron, supporting him, and teaching him how to win at the highest level. Ultimately, Wade was one of the reasons LeBron decided to come back to Cleveland.

LeBron came back because he missed home, wanted to achieve his goal of winning a championship for Cleveland, didn’t like being told what to do by Pat Riley, and thought his window of winning with Wade was closing.  During his time in Miami, LeBron had to take on a lot more than he thought during the regular season because Wade missed a lot of games due to injuries, and it was intriguing to him to think about playing with a young, blossoming star like Kyrie Irving.

The (Kyrie Irving) Cavalier years:

LeBron knew he could lengthen his championship window by teaming with and mentoring a younger core with fresher legs that could take some of the pressure off of him.  Kyrie is probably a better “Robin” for LeBron than Wade because of the fact that his skill set is a better complement to LeBron’s, and he is a younger player that has all of his prime still ahead of him.  Being a natural point guard, Kyrie automatically has the ball a lot because of his position.  He also creates well for himself off the dribble and has a better perimeter shot than Wade.

LeBron and Wade both liked to drive to score or drive and kick, but neither of them had a great perimeter shot.  Kyrie is great at knocking down the three or making an extra pass to give someone else an open look.  There isn’t as much pressure on Kyrie because everyone still expects LeBron to be “the man,” and that has helped Kyrie become one of the best closers in the game.  Examples of that would include Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals or the game against Golden State on Christmas Day.  Other teams might want to start using resources to stop him at the end of games as well.

While Wade adapted well to playing with LeBron and is responsible for helping him get his first two championships, Kyrie is a better fit to be his “Robin” now and in the future.  His youth, perimeter shooting, and his ability to hit clutch shots at the end of games make him the perfect complement to LeBron.  He may even be able to drag LeBron to a championship or two when he gets near the end of his career.