Scottie Pippen vs. Dwyane Wade: Who ya got?

[housecall]

Defense wins championships...Scottie Pippen is the better defender.

[chambers]

Defense wins championships...Scottie Pippen is the better defender.

Doesn't Wade have a championship as 'The Man' on that team?
He's also playing right now in the NBA finals as one of the leaders on the best defensive team in the NBA.

Also, people are ignoring the OP's question.
It's not 'who's a better 2nd option or 2nd fiddle etc'.
It's who is the better player out of the two.

[housecall]

Defense wins championships...Scottie Pippen is the better defender.

Doesn't Wade have a championship as 'The Man' on that team?
He's also playing right now in the NBA finals as one of the leaders on the best defensive team in the NBA.

Also, people are ignoring the OP's question.
It's not 'who's a better 2nd option or 2nd fiddle etc'.
It's who is the better player out of the two.

Pippen is my choice because i believe he is the better player of the two by being the better defender.

[moiso]

Wade is the better player but I'd prefer Pippen as my second in command.

[mgent]

If I have LeBron, Melo, Durant, Dirk, Rose on my team, obviously Pippen.  If I have Howard, Amare, CP3, KG, pretty much anyone else, then obviously Wade.

We're talking about two underrated players here.  Wade is the 2nd best player in the league, and easily as good as LeBron in everything except facilitating (which he is still above average at).  He is good enough to put ANY team in the championship discussion.

Pippen on the other hand is much more replacement.  As a player he isn't, but as a championship piece, Wade is more valuable.  If he's already on a team with a ball-dominant offensive option, then he's the ideal compliment.  But if you have to take 1 guy to build around, I wouldn't take Pippen over Wade because any defensive stopper would work with him, whereas it'd be much harder to find a Wade-type level of talent to pair with Pippen.

[CelticSince83]

I expect Wade to have the better career when it is all said and done because Pippen's prime was fairly short. Pippen had a long career (16/17 years) but a short prime (5/6 years). I expect Wade to have more seasons as an MVP or near MVP caliber talent than Pippen had.

However, at their respective peaks, their value was fairly comparable to one another. They do have different skill-sets though so that would be the deciding factor. How they fit in on their team.

Primarily, as the question asks, it would depend on what type of player their main talent is. Is the main player a perimeter player? Or a big man? Is he an elite scorer (say Kevin Durant) or a good-to-very good scorer + elite facilitator (say Dwight Howard)?

I'd be inclined to choose Wade alongside the elite big man and/or the elite facilitator and choose Pippen alongside the elite perimeter scorer.

I'd pick Pippen in that situation because I think his non-scoring contributions where greater and that he is a more seamless fit offensively as a second option alongside a top scorer. I'd choose Wade when I wanted a top notch scorer / go-to guy on the perimeter.

This about sums it up.  Wade would be preferable with a Patrick Ewing, CP3, David Robinson, Duncan.  Pippen would be preferable with coincidentally Jordan, Durant, Dirk, Iverson.  Also, I think D-Wade's defense is WAY undervalued, he has had a TON of clutch blocks during this year's playoffs to close games out.  Wade is the better overall player though (it's really close), and Pippen might be a perfect counterpart to him if they both played in the same era.  Imagine that 1-2 punch........

[JBcat]

Well, I look at it this way.  Unless if you have a SG superior to Wade then I choose Wade.   As far as I can remember going back to the 80's the only SG I'd rather have is prime Jordan and prime Kobe.   So I'd rather have Wade next to an elite PG, SF, PF, or C.   Pippen was a great player but he was a little lucky being a perfect compliment to Jordan.   If Pippen played alongside a lesser star he might not have any rings, and Pippen couldn't come close to what Wade did in the 2006 finals.   

[xmuscularghandix]

Technically if you're breaking down the Heat Wade=Jordan and LeBron=Pippen. Imagine if Pippen was a number 1 option for another team for his first 7 years, then The Bulls signed him to play with MJ?

[Eja117]

Wade if I also have Kukoc.   Generally I take Pippen, it's just that he was all pouty and jealous and I hate that.  Who wants a player that won't go into a big game? 

[LB3533]

Wade.

Wade takes some plays off on defensive, but he makes a ton of highlight and crunch time defensive plays.

[Celtics17]

I have to agree with Mr. October on this one. He said almost exactly what I would have. One thing I used to say about Pippen was that the was 'the best in the game from 11 feet up''. I know it sounds funny but he did get higher on many plays then MJ.

I would defitely choose Pippen. His defensvie versatility was unsurpassed and his offense was underrated too. If I can thin of one player from the NBA that could have guarded both MJ and Lebron it would have to be Pippen although Russell could have too. He could also rebound and pass as well as about anyone else at his position too.

[Army_of_One_Nation]

And yet, there is something that I have never forgotten about Pippen: His refusal to play second fiddle to Kukoc for a few seconds.

[Bahku]

Scottie.

[Eja117]

How about.....neither

[RAG50K]

Pippen was an AMAZING all around player. He was a better three point shooter than Wade, more defensively talented, a better rebounder and an as good athlete and facilitator as Wade. Triple double threat in every game he played