Because I BMX maybe I have a different perspective. A big change in the world of BMX was tires going from 20 x 1.75 to 20 x 2.5. If I have a low amount of tire pressure lets say 40 psi then the smaller tire feels much faster. I could be wrong but I believe it is because the larger tire has a lot more flex/deformation because the volume of air pressure is much lower. The small tire is at 80-90% air capacity where as the bigger is a little less then 40%. This allows the bigger tire to make more contact with the road. But if I take the bigger tire and fill it up to 100 psi which takes the flex away and the tire is making less contact the rolling resistance is going to decrease and feel the same as the small tire.
With cars it's well known that lighter wheels = better performance. Some call it "un-sprung wheel weight". The bigger tire is going to have more rubber and more air volume so it's going to be a tiny bit heavier. But again other things are going to effect this like rim weight. Or the bigger tire being made from lighter material then a smaller tire. Also if the PSI matches the riders weight, as I am a bit heavier and need that extra PSI to not flatten out the tire. I think some people would notice the difference in wheel weight and others won't.