“Arguably the greatest point guard of all time vs popularly considered the third best shooting guard of all time.” The comparison between the 2008 Redeem Team and the 2024 Team has brought in a comparison between Stephen Curry and Dwyane Wade. The discussion emerged on Above the Rim Podcast with podcast guests and hosts picking sides.

During the discussion, Quinn Cook argued he would place Curry over Wade in support of the 2024 team. “Steph too small for Dwyane Wade,” Dwight Howard said, supporting the former Miami Heat star. The 2x NBA champ countered Howard’s point, stating “D-Wade wants no parts of Steph.” The debate continued further with DeMarcus Cousins re-emphasizing the ex-Heat star as the 3rd best shooting guard of all time. Meanwhile, Cook pointed out Curry as the best PG of all time, even over Magic Johnson.

While it’s true that Magic and Steph are considered the two best PGs ever, it does not automatically place the 2024 Olympics’ Steph over the 2008 Olympics’ Wade. The former Miami Heat star, 27 during the 08 Olympics clearly had age to his advantage as compared to Curry presently at 36. The visible difference between the performances should make it further clear.

Wade emerged as the top scorer of Team USA during his run with the Redeem team. Meanwhile, Curry has been struggling with shooting in his first Olympics appearance. And even statically comparing the two players at a similar age, The Flash had averaged 23.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 6.5 assists in his first 6 seasons. Meanwhile, Curry had averaged 20.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 6.7 assists in his initial 6 seasons.

The only up the GSW star had over the 3x champ was in shooting from beyond the arc (44.0 vs 25.8), as Wade led in shooting from the field (48.1 vs 46.7). As far as the stats and the visible performance at the two events are concerned, it does not seem ’24 Curry can outplay ’08 Wade. But what about the larger picture of the Redeem Team against the 2024 Olympic Team?

2008 Redeem Team vs 2024 Team: A quick analysis

First things first, the 2024 team undeniably has more depth on the roster than the 2008 team. Even Dwyane Wade has himself agreed to it in a recent interview during an interview with NBC News. “… My ‘08 team was very good, but I don’t know if we was as deep as this team,” he said. However, 2024 may seem to fade in comparison with the ’08 team in some other aspects.

The only player in common on both the teams is LeBron James. Now Bron is no less than the backbone of ’24 team with his over two decades of NBA experience. But the Redeem Team James has an athletic advantage, who went on to win 4 of the next 5 MVP titles. In fact, his last MVP title was that fourth one itself in 2013, so the advantage here leans towards the ’08 team.

Apart from this, the Redeem Team had arguably the two best shooting guards in NBA history after Michael Jordan — Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. And it’s not as if the team had no depth at all, as the roster had one of the purest scorers in the NBA, Carmelo Anthony. Players like Chris Bosh and an experienced Jason Kidd are just some other highlights of the team.

With 3x DPOY, Dwight Howard, the chances that ’24 team can outclass the ’08 team in defense are thin. No wonder that the Redeem Team displayed a one-sided domination throughout their Olympic run. Meanwhile, the 2024 team had a couple close calls during exhibition games despite all the depth. Now, although there is no concrete way of figuring out the outcome, the both statistical and visible odds seem to be slightly in favor of the ’08 USA men’s basketball team.

Stay tuned for more such updates. And join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.