Dwayne Wade retired as one of the best two guards in NBA history. In 16 seasons, Wade accumulated 13 All-Star Game appearances, three NBA championships, eight All-NBA selections and a Finals MVP award in 2006.

The Miami Heat legend dominated the NBA for over a decade but, with his time now over, it is time for Wade to pass the torch onto the next generation of NBA stars.

Among those possibly in line to rise to the occasion is New York Knicks rookie RJ Barrett. After a stellar freshman season at Duke, Barrett was selected by the Knicks with the third pick of the most recent NBA Draft.

The 6-foot-6 shooting guard has played fairly well for a Knicks squad that isn’t winning many games and frankly, hasn’t won very many games in the past few years. However, that is exactly why Dwyane Wade is such a big fan of the Canadian rookie.

“I love a kid that wants to take the challenge. RJ really wanted to be a Knick. You guys know that that’s been a tough challenge for a lot of players that had the opportunity to choose to go to New York and they haven’t. He took it (head) on and said I want to be a Knick. I give him a lot of respect for that,” Dwyane Wade said during a conference call to announce his role as an analyst on NBA on TNT Tuesday Night telecasts, per SNY.TV.

In 41 games this season, Barrett has put up 14.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, but he has struggled with efficiency and is shooting less than 40 percent from the floor and just 32.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Barrett is not the best rookie this season, but the way he has played and the flashes of brilliance he has displayed gives hope to Knicks fans about his superstar potential. And luckily for him, Wade will be watching him.