He's been praising Harden lately, so this seems out of sorts. He may be venting that his Celtics are failing to live up to expectations while Philly and Toronto have solidified their rosters.
You know leading 16 with 7 minutes left in today's NBA is still a losable game, especially when your second best player has old legs and needs to take some rest, right? So Harden was going to play in the fourth quarter, for the win, not for the record(at least not just for the record). In the first 4 minutes he played in the fourth quarter, he took only 1 shot. What he did was calling for picks, drawing double teams and passing out the ball to open teammates, making the right plays. If he just entered the game for the record, why wouldn't he just go one on one and shoot at will? At minute 2:30, Houston only led by 9, again still a very losable game(check, e.g., our last game against the Mavs). Harden decided when his teammates wasn't making shots, he would do it. He scored in the next 4 possessions and sealed the deal. Did he want the record? Yes, absolutely. Did he force it and hurt the team by making incorrect plays? Hell No. If you are really nit picking, Harden could have left the game after he made his two free throws and he did play 25 unnecessary seconds, took 1 unnecessary shot. To me, I won't call this playing for the record.
Considering the workload Harden has endured this season - and previous seasons - and the history of fatigue come playoffs, the most logical strategy would be James' sitting the 4th or until the game was single digit.
1) Bill Simmons knows nothing. 2) The streak is worth continuing. To blow off that 3 point shot would be idiotic and even bad for basketball.
Every time Harden extends his streak, he increases the probability of future Rockets games being broadcast on national TV. So, on behalf of the Rockets diaspora: Fire away, garbage time or not.
I'm sure Bill actually enjoys it, to be honest. I think most people have Harden as their MVP and recognize that he saved Houston's season.
I feel like the only proper response to people like this is the squinted-eyes, shaking-head, softly-spoken "What's wrong with you?"
Do you know what makes **** so stupid? Wilt Chamberlin averaged 48.5 minutes PER ****ING GAME because he played EVERY single minute of every game PLUS every minute of overtime. Who cares if Harden stayed into to reach his 30ppg, he only played 35 minutes anyways. HOW THE HELL is he supposed to beat the record of the man who played every god damn minute without trying sometimes. And hell, this team is trash at closing out games and there's always a chance we need Harden in case the team starts imploding. Dumb mother ****ing @ssholes sun of b**** **** heads loser c*ck suckers don't know **** about ****.
What pisses me off about people saying he is stat chasing is when he decided not to stat chase his 50 pt streak no one said ****. People just contort reality to fit their world view, which is "Harden = bad man"
Monday night in H-Town. People wanna beat the traffic and get home. As for the morons who clearly don't watch the Rockets and were questioning why Harden was in there late, I have two words for them: Brooklyn Nets.
I’m amazed that a rocket fan would say something as ridiculous as suggesting harden shoot sit out the fourth quarter because of a 14 point lead lol. Wait until it’s single digits? Ridiculous. Harden comes in cold to try to save a three possession game? Give me a break
Last time I checked , there’s a shot clock. Rockets up 9, Harden gets 2 clutch 3’s and gets to the line. Somebody has to take the last shot of the game. Heat check, 11 points in 100 seconds
