[Media Conspiracy] "Harden has more help"...since WHEN?

Westbrook is the rightful MVP because Sam Presti did a worse job than Daryl Morey

 

ESPN's player rankings before the season started...

OKC
Westbrook - 5th
Adams - 36th
Oladipo - 48th
Kanter - 80th

Houston
Harden - 8th
Gordon - 86th
Anderson - 89th
Capela - 92nd
Ariza - 99th

now Harden has too much help...

 

deserves its own thread. I'm serious.

 

Jim has more help since he actually makes teammates around him better players. Russ is a stat chaser and his teammates games suffer as a result. I think this is quite obvious.

 

That is odd indeed but I am adamant that Gordon has improved his status to at least Top 40-50. Nene and Capela should be better as well.

And Williams has been a very good addition.

 

Not only that, but if "having more help" is a negative in the MVP consideration, why did Steph Curry win the MVP 2 years ago? That year, the Rockets were plagued by injuries all season long and Harden still carried the team to the #2 seed in a stacked Western Conference.

This year, Westbrook has his team as a 6th seed but he is more deserving because the Rockets, with only one all star, have more help for Harden?

It doesn't even make any sense. But oh wait, Westbrook is averaging 2 more rebounds a game. I forgot how important that was.

 

But you have to wonder- why is Gordon and Anderson having some of their best years? They were together in New Orleans, with another superstar that should have been taking all the attention, and they were not as good or as efficient. If anything that would make for a stronger argument for Harden as the playmaker and his ability to make his teammates better instead of stat stuffing like Westbrook.

 

This is an awesome post got a link for these numbers if I want to cite this later?

 

I agree that Gordon, Capela, and Nene have improved their status. These rankings just go to show that these players on the Rockets weren't highly regarded before the season started. Also, these rankings from ESPN, the main place claiming that Harden has too much help, weren't created by just 1 random dude. These rankings were compiled by a panel of over 100 people. The fact that Harden now has "too much help" should be a testament to how much he's elevated the play of those around him.

 

You are forgetting that Dan Tony's system is boosting up Harden's numbers

 

BUT BUT BUT

How do the Rockets have 'more help' when the Thunder have the higher payroll?

Harden is taking a team that is cheaper further

so

Who is deciding that the Rockets have more 'help'?

 

For the sixth season in a row, ESPN.com is ranking the top players in the NBA. Who will be the best player this season?

To get the final ranking, we asked our EXPERT PANEL to vote on pairs of players.

We asked, "Which player will be better in 2016-17?" To decide, voters had to consider both the quality and the quantity of each player's contributions to his team's ability to win games.

Westbrook (5th)
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/pag...ma-city-thunder-point-guard-russell-westbrook

Harden (8th)
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/page/nbarank8_2016

Adams (36th)
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/page/nbarank36/nbarank-36-oklahoma-city-thunder-center-steven-adams

Oladipo (48th)
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/page/nbarank4150/nbarank-players-41-50

Kanter (80th), Gordon (86th), Anderson (89th), Capela (92nd), Ariza (99th)
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/page/nbarank51100/nbarank-players-51-100

 

This post needs to be stuffed into a time capsule for posterity. Let it ring throughout the Twittersphere that a Media Conspiracy has been LOGGED!

 

Honestly, it's b/c they (and the Rockets as a whole) have managed to stay relatively healthy.

 

Just like one way or another, the 6th Man of the Year is on Houston's bench ... one way or another, Houston has the MVP or Executive of the Year. Can't say that the reason Harden is not MVP is because of the quality of his team and not acknowledge Morey for putting it together.

 

This is another ridiculous argument that the media likes to make. Why don't they ever mention that Westbrook having the highest usage rate in NBA history boosts up his numbers as well?

 

Because OKC has younger players and are paying for their potential. The Rockets have experienced vets and are paying for known production. Paying for potential is always significantly more expensive.