[Official Thread] Media/Player Reaction to James Harden 2019-2020

Kawhi finished top 10 in mvp voting in 2014/2015, when he won DPOY and led SA in scoring.

 

In Kawhi’s rookie season the Spurs leading scorer avg 18. Then 20, then 17, then Kawhi’s team leading 17. Sounds like you have an issue with the Spurs system.

 

Id have no problem saying top 10 for the decade. He shouldn’t be above Harden period

 

No I have a problem with calling mediocre performance top 5 of a decade.

2016 and on he has been. That’s not enough of the decade to be considered

 

How is finishing top 10 in mvp voting mediocore (2014/2015 season)?

You clowned a 17 ppg average when you could lead SA in scoring with that avg, based on how they played. Clearly it wasn’t mediocore.

 

Harden led his team to a title?

 

Yes, 16.5 ppg and a top 10 MVP vote is nothing to write home about.
2016 and on is when he’s been elite

 

Ive already said this. Doesn’t look like titles were taken into consideration, Westbrook was top 5 and he hasn’t done more than Harden.
Harden is and has been a better player than Kawhi. You might want to take off your black and silver colored glasses off

 

I've no problem with someone picking Kawhi over Harden... One player has won FMVP in multiple championships against TWO super-teams, while the other has routinely faded in the playoffs despite putting up big regular season numbers.

Westbrook over Harden on the other hand is just plain stupid.

 

I wouldnt think anyone in the world has a "much higher" motor than Harden.

 

wrong thread

 

Leading your team in scoring, winning DPOY and being considered one of the 10 best players in a 180 player league is plenty to write home about.

No list is going to ignore winning. Maybe they just love the triple double.

 

Ok man, you’re right. 16.5 pts a game and top 10 in mvp voting makes you a top 5 player of the decade. Sound reasoning for sure

 

Pretty cool reading all the player reactions to Harden on this page. Thanks guys

 

I wouldn't call Kawhi's 1415 season mediocre, he won DPOY as a perimeter player, which is quite an accomplishment. But finishing tied 10th in
MVP voting doesn't really mean anything. Every season, only 2 or at most 3 players are really in the MVP conversation, and there're lots of randomnesses in the rank outside of top 5. Kawhai that year only got 1 last place vote, which is enough for him to be ranked 10th in MVP voting, like I said, MVP votes are highly concentrated on only 2 or 3 players. Is getting one last place vote in MVP voting really that big an accomplishment?

He wasn't even close to a top 10 player that year. He wasn't selected to the all nba team, nor the all star team, which ranks him outside top 24 players in the league. He was top-tier close to star role player that year. 2015-2016 season was when he really became an all star. His 2019 FMVP really elevated the value of his 2014 FMVP, which he won as a top tier role player.

 

Leading your team in scoring while being DPOY while finishing 10 in mvp voting = a top season that you aren’t trying to count as one. Good attempt though.

Of his 9 seasons this decade he’s been a top player for 6 of them, and led a team to a title (something less than a handful of people can claim).

 

Even if we count 14/15 season as a top tier season (solid but not a top 5 or even 10 player) that still only gives him 5 good seasons in the decade, which it’s really 4. That’s enough to make top 5 for the decade?

 

@Icehouse Let me ask you this man. Would Gobert be a player of the decade candidate?
DPOY and 2nd/3rd option on a motion based offense.

 

False. Every forward to make the team ahead of him, aside from Pau Gasol, finished ahead of him in MVP voting that season. Plenty of deserving players get left off the all-star team, especially non flashy ones, and even Harden didn’t make an All-NBA team in 15/16.

Role players don’t lead their team in scoring while also being the best defender in all of basketball.

 

That’s not the totality of his resume. I’ll say any player that leads their team in scoring while winning DPOY would be considered to have had a great season, validated by a top 10 mvp finish. Did gobert finish top 10?