Should Harden take a mid-range jumper if left open or dared to?

Well, if it's a double dog dare, he kind of has to.

 

Nope. 3>2. Midrange sucks. Harden can’t shoot a midrange shot, even if it’s open. Look at his stats from 3 years ago when he quit shooting it. Lol.

Harden can master the eurostep, step back 3’s, side step 3’s, and how to juke a player every couple of games into tripping over their own feet, but he couldn’t possibly learn to reliably hit an open shot from the free throw line.

Yeah, I’m not buying it either...

Harden has the offensive skills to do whatever he wants. He has proven it year after year. He will figure out how to exploit this ****. It may be the midrange shot. It may be something that none of us have even thought about.

 

he could be good at it if he practiced. and he was very effective in the post under mchale before MDA took that option away. he's become more efficient since focusing on the analytics but he needs more than 2 options so the defenses have to stay honest.

 

Absolutely. He took plenty of them his first few seasons with Houston and even won a few games on the elbow.

 

Increasing your shooting percentage isn't really comparable to the examples you bring up. This isn't like learning the euro step, or the stepback, the sidestep, or a crossover. This is about shooting percentages. It's not about learning a new move, or learning a new skill...he has the skill. He has the ability to shoot midrange shots, just like he has the ability to shoot 3 pointers. But he's never going to be a 50% midrange shooter, just like he's never going to be a mid 40s 3 point shooter.

And I think you make a good point that he will figure out how to exploit this. I do have confidence that he can figure something out, he always does, like you said. Maybe the answer is a stop and pop, and forcing the trailing defender to jump into his back and foul him. Or maybe it is something we haven't even thought about. All I'm saying is I don't think the answer is for him to bring back the midrange game that he used to play under McHale, and hope he can convert those types of shots at/near 50%. We have plenty of evidence that this part of his game is not efficient.

 

I suggest to pass the ball to Cp3 or Rivers. They can make the rhythm stable and keep the lead

 

He needs to just do what the defense gives him. If it is a midrange shot. So be it. However if he is scoring a bunch of 2's, they better pick up the pace and make sure for every 2 threes the warriors make he makes 4 2's quickly. I really hope our team is feeling alot healthier and ready for this 2nd round matchup.

 

Pass it to Chris Paul, he is a Midrange and a Post Up player. His Post Up one on one is better than Clint Capela.

 

well he seems to have gotten much better at taking the floater if having that space.

 

The only reason Harden can take a mid range is if HE wants to.

Taking the mid range because the opponent is daring him or just leaving it open is just dumb, that means you're like a 9 yr old being teased by the neighborhood bully. Harden will take the mid range just because of a dare? What if GSW double dog dares him?

If the opponent wants you to do something, doing it probably won't win you the game, simple as that. Remember when Rox were leaving Donkey wide open daring him to shoot a 3? Or isoing Durant against Tucker daring him to score? Thats what happens when you fall for the enemy's dares, a brick and a lost game.

 

It will be really interesting to see what he comes up with next. That’s for sure!

 

Taking a midrange If it’s open is dumb? LOL—the golden state warriors shoot the 2nd most midrange shots in the league, and also have the best 3pt shooters collectively . They’ve won 3/4 last championships. Forcing a contested 3 or driving into a clogged lane with no whistles instead of taking the equivalent of a FT (an open shot at the FT line is a midrange shot) is levels of idiocy I can’t really begin to explain. And quite frankly, I don’t need to. The results and what works for teams is clear as day every year

 

Nobody leaves harden open for midrange. When he’s in the midrange area, there are defenders behind and in front of him. James will figure something out this offseason to counter it, he always does

 

Golden State also has 3 of the best shooters in history with 5 all stars in the team why are you using them as an example? That team has 4 players capable of going scoring 30 on any given night using them as an argument to prove anything is just dumb. They have 2x as many all stars as any other team in the L they can do whatever they want doesn't mean you will have success if you copy them cuz guess what you don't have 5 all stars in the roster.

If KD, Klay or Steph takes an open mid range majority of the time it will go in how many teams has 3 players like that?

GSW takes the furthest 3 pt shots in the league and they have won 3 of the 4 championships. Rox should have everyone emulate Steph and have all the players take 3 steps away from 3 pt line before they shoot. LMAO! The only thing GSW has proved is if you have nore than 2 all stars all than everybody else you will win 3 of the next 4 championships. Duuuuuuuuuuh.

P.S. An open mid range shot is the equivalent of a ft? Really? How many players shoot 60% or above on mid range shots? Show some stats before you invent stuff there's a reason mid range shots are called the worst shot in bball.

 

Kawai Leonard and Durant made mid range shots again and again. Half of their shots are mid range in playoffs.

It would be stupid if Morey tells Harden to gave up mid range shots.

 

You can't come up with any plans to stop Kawhi or Durant because they can get their shot off and make it from anywhere on the court. No way in the hell that gimmcky doggystyle defense would work against Kawhi or Durant.

When you have five or more options in your arsenal of weapons, taking away one or two won't do much damage. When your options are limited to three or below, I don't care how good you are at those things, it's always possible to limit that player's effectiveness with some clever schemes.

 

Rockets need to incorporate more plays that involve Harden posting up like in 2015 and actively look for the 2. I guarantee you if we keep going for threes, we're not winning this series.

 

I think this game showed why Harden needs to practice on his midrange shots now more than ever: he's slowly declining in athleticism and losing his lift and quickness, which makes his finishing ability at the rim not what it used to be. The whole floaters thing was oversold to the fans, because Harden was never good at those until this very season, and it's generally really difficult shot to consistently make. That's why very few players regularly use them as opposed to just pulling up for a simple midrange.

That means Harden is no longer a strong finisher as he ages nor a midrange shooter, and almost exclusively has to rely on three pointers and free throws to score his points.

 

He hit a couple didn’t he? What’s with the insistence of “no we don’t want those 2 points”. Also to the people saying you have to be good “midrange shooters” that sounds ridiculous to anybody that has played before. It’s a FT line shot. Looney and Livingston hit them routinely