Matt Barnes asked Dwyane Wade straight-up what it's like raising a gay son coming from a hyper-masculine NBA background ... and what D-Wade says is powerful stuff.
Dwyane and his wife, Gabrielle Union, have been publicly supportive of 12-year-old Zion (Wade's son from a previous relationship) over the past year ... even taking him to a Gay Pride Festival in Miami Beach last April.
So, when Wade appeared on Stephen Jackson and Barnes' "All The Smoke" podcast this week .