why isn't Kevin Love overrated? Harden in his first year here and first year as a starter led a young, inexperienced Rockets (who were ranked 29 in power rankings before the trade) to the playoffs. The T-Wolves were expected to make the playoffs last season but barely reached .500 for the season..Kevin Love has been there 6 straight years and has led them to squat.
I don't subscribe to the whole "empty stats" thing. Anybody who's dropping 26 and 12 is not the problem. Minnesota had a bunch of injuries, and they also haven't drafted well at all in recent memory. I don't think Kevin Love is Top 5 or anything, but I don't think he's "overrated". Firmly a Top 10 player in the league.
how is dwight howard overrated? Which center in the league would you take first when you are trying to win a championship at this very moment? He's rated as #1 center in the league right now, and rightfully so...
Meh. Harden arrived here a few days before the season started with a brand new team (the whole team was practically new except McHale and Parsons). All the power rankings had the team with Kevin Martin before he got traded still near the last in the league. Harden arrived here to become the 1st option and a starter for the first time in his career and led a very, very young team into the playoffs. The T-Wolves were hyped up last season as the new breakthough team to make the playoffs. Love played 77 games, Martin played 68 games, Rubio played 82, Brewer played 81, Pekovic was the only starter that missed significant time missing about 30 games. The injuries excuse doesn't apply here.
Not trying to compare him to Harden, as I'd take Harden over Love. Harden has proven more, and plays a much less stacked position, and is more of a playmaker, so I think he's more valuable. I'm just saying I don't believe Love had anything to do with Minnesota missing the playoffs. He did his part. 26 and 12 is amazing to average, and it's hard to expect much more. The injury comment I made was mainly in reference to his entire time in Minnesota, rather than just last season, where I agree it wasn't much of a factor. It's just personal opinion, really. I get the arguments against Love. I just don't personally subscribe to them.
It's funny. Kyrie was front and center in that article; but the ESPN link lists Harden and Howard. Can't go against the popular players now, can we? ESPN. Where haters hate.
Minnesota's biggest problem was crunch time, and it wasn't even so much their shot making or defense as it was their rebounding (40% - last, 18% O - last?, 63% D - 2nd last), they finished with the one of the lowest rebound rates of the last 10 years, and basically every team who has ever rebounded near that bad has been a god awful crunch time team (you need to go up to about 46% to find a team over the decade that doesn't suck as an outcome). All of their other factors were more on pace with a 50 win team, except their crunch time rebounding, and that was the impact.
Wasn't Kobe ranked #40 on their list? So is ESPN saying they were wrong, and Kobe should not even be in the top 50?
Last year's playoffs proved D12 ain't overrated. As for Harden, I guess we'll find out in the playoffs. Can he adjust his gamestyle and be more consistent for the playoffs? Can he stay focused on D for the whole game? A huge year for Harden to prove that he can do these things. If he can, that would be awesome. If he can't, then Morey needs to get that elusive 3rd star.
We'll stick it to them. We need a little more fire power but the starting line up seems pretty freaking solid.
Why do they need to prove themselves? Who's saying Dwight and Harden are the best players in the league? Everybody considers them top 10 material at best, which is where they belong how are they overrated? In the case of Howard, this statement is even more ridiculous because he is the undisputed 1 center in the entire league, if he's overrated or he needs to prove himself what do you call guys like Joakim Noah or Demarcus Cousins? Dwight reached the finals carrying a weak ass Orlando team, what has Noah or Cousins done by themselves? This article is ridiculous, ESPN themselves put Howard and Harden in the top 10, now they're saying they're overrated? LOL WTF
ESPN been talking trash about a lot of players lately especially Kobe. Seems they are trying to keep certain teams relavent by stirring up controversy
