Dwyane Wade joins Franz Wagner fan club after German star's 26-point masterclass vs. Victor Wembanyama & Co.
Germany's Franz Wagner got a new fan in Dwyane Wade after beating France, 85-71, in the group play on Friday at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The European team has been on fire, winning all three games. Wagner stood out with his 26-point performance, beating the powerhouse host team.
Despite France being one of the top teams in this year's Olympics, that didn't seem to faze the Orlando Magic star. Wagner was efficient in the game, shooting 53% from the field. He also had five rebounds to help the national team. Dennis Schroder, the team's point guard, added 26 points.
Wade was impressed with Wagner's performance and gave him a shoutout on Instagram.
"Got a new fan in me," Wade wrote.
Wagner has been stellar for Germany in this year's Olympics. In Tuesday's 86-73 win against Brazil, the forward helped out with 17 points, four rebounds and three assists. Although he didn't make a shot from beyond the arc, missing all of his six attempts, he didn't allow it to bother him.
The Magic forward also showed up in their opening game against Japan, who they beat 97-77. Wagner put up 22 points and six rebounds, leading the team in points.
For France, Victor Wembanyama's efforts weren't enough to keep up with the Germans. Wemby only had 14 points and 12 rebounds and wasn't aggressive on the offensive end of the floor. Evan Fournier helped the national team with 10 points (40% shooting from the field).
Dwyane Wade brushed off hater who called him "corny"
Dwyane Wade may be retired from the game of basketball, but he still likes to get involved in the sport. He traveled to Paris to do the color commentating for NBC Sports. However, not everyone is a fan of his brand of broadcasting.
On X (formerly known as Twitter), a fan called out Wade for his style of commentating on Thursday. According to the fan, he thinks the former Miami Heat star is "corny."
"Sometimes I am my guy. Appreciate you listening anyways," Wade replied to the comment.
Despite this, some fans expressed how they enjoyed the former star's commentary in games. Wade has shown a ton of promise in being with the media, which could be the path he might choose later on.