I started this post not to illicit additional slander or stir up more harden hate or be divisive...there are plenty of threads for that. Instead, I wanted to get a healthy debate on this man’s legacy, not only in Houston, but his career, from the perspective of Houston fans. One conclusion I’ve come to over the last loooonng two weeks is that the media and folks outside of Houston always tended to “hate” on Harden in some fashion right? The only change now is he has no one to defend him anymore. He’s burning bridges left and right, almost daily. The knock on harden has never been his skill we all know that, his attitude, style of play and quite frankly results in the playoffs unfortunately was. His actions over the last month speak to someone he always was which just so happened to be masked by his stellar play and the organization’s empowerment. So I leave these questions for folks to opine on. What’s Harden’s legacy in Houston? Is he an all time great Rocket with a salty ending? Do we retire his number? If you own his Jersey what do you do with it (donate or keep?) Does the NBA world forget this ever happened in a few years? Does he ever win a ring? Will you still cheer for him when he leaves? oh and happy holidays!
Top 25 player of all time with a odd personality, insatiable appetite for thiccc booties, a notorious playing style and a complete failure with spreading Covid even though he put his best effort into it.
Sucks, you would think dude would retire here...Org gave him everything...even if he doesnt get a ring he would have been looked at highly Now he is putting himself on McGrady level, but Harden is a better player IMO, top 20-25 of all time, even without the ring
A talented self absorbed narcissistic diva incapable of working with other stars for the overall good of the team... A weak minded player that had teams and game plans tailor made for him - yet still continuously melted down at the most crucial junctures... fool's gold... Dominique Wilkins with an attitude...
He might be remembered in the same tier as Elgin Baylor or Karl Malone. In time, his accomplishments will be highly respected but he will not personally be a widely beloved figure. But who knows, really. A lot can change if he lands in a good circumstance and changes the narrative around his postseason play.
Closer to Westbrook than Hakeem. We will never forget the 27 straight missed 3-points ... the constant chucking up shots in a defenders face hoping to draw a foul. That is not championship basketball.
Harden is the 2nd best Rocket of all time. Regardless of the **** he is pulling right now, I will always respect the legacy of James as a Rocket. If he doesn't cool down his antics, I'll need to boo him a few times when he comes back to Houston before I forgive and forget.
Trending toward T-Mac territory. "Hired gun." The NBA community does not care what he did to/for Houston. NBA-wide, if he doesn't win a championship, trending toward AI territory. The NBA has had plenty of great IDGAF players. If he leaves Houston, Harden will never approach Hakeem-level respect, nor Yao, nor Calvin Murphy. Gotta have a Rockets heart.
a guy who still hasn't grown up....who is letting his talent go to waste without focus on the game...(Kobe was focused, MJ was focused) more interested in booty and hanging out with rappers and giving honey-buns... selfish and self-centered and too ignorant to know it.... what a waste..... it's not the team around him.... its him, the guy who he looks at in the mirror every day. He himself is his own worst enemy.
Way too much recency bias. No one would even think to post this kind of thread around Thanksgiving. From 2012 to the end of November 2020, no one had a bad opinion of Harden. Suddenly, Rockets fans hate Harden, and throw out insults like "you'll never be Hakeem, loser?" Fanbase is pretty toxic.
Beg to differ. Also a fanbase cannot be toxic by principle unless they are stalking, being racist or dishing out death threats or insulting family members. We've created a society where we worship people making 40 million dollar salaries and look down about people who criticize third play who are responsible for said 40 million dollar salary as the fans are the ones who buy the tickets, watch the games for ad revenue and buy merch. We owe Harden nothing. He owes us a supermax contract worth of basketball. It's that simple. His reward is living the most lavish lifestyle known to man. Is that not enough or do all Houstonians need to line up on their knees for Harden? You need some God damn perspective.
Fair. But I posed the question today though, and wanted a point in time perspective on his legacy. So yes you can’t just account for what recently happened, you can also include those data points/experiences from 2012 - November 2020... nonetheless, in my opinion, I think the story reigns true regardless, He’ll never be a all time rocket because he never won a ring. I think folks will talk about this situation years later on how it ended here similar to the way it comes up all the time with Barkley and the rockets. Unfortunate but probably inevitable at this point.
Houston is primarily a football city. The rockets simply aren't a huge deal unless they can win the title like they did in 94-95. Even at the peak of his powers, Harden isn't all that celebrated or beloved. Imagine 10 years from now. Without a title Harden will be a shining memory only to the die hard Rockets or harden fans. I'm guessing most will think of Campbell, Watt, Hakeem, biggio bagwell, bergman or some other football stars before Harden comes to mind. Nationally it'll be even worst. He'll probably be remembered similar to elgin baylor or karl malone. Prolific numbers but simply not on the 1st or 2nd list of memorable/famous/popular stars. However one place that will have Hardens jersey and statue shining brightly is ironically the dimmest. Strip clubs across the southern usa will pass on legendary stories of Harden making it rain.
One of the best players who i thought was unjustly hated by literally almost every casuals b4 this drama took place. I figured if he was traded back then to the bigger market team and never to us he would have been beloved and got worshipped.
Hired gun? He’s been here 8 years. Even if it’s a messy divorce, he has been a Rockets fixture for nearly a decade, and the team record books reflect this. Once we get some distance from this, I think he will get his due. Unless he wins a championship, as far as NBA legacy, I think he will be viewed as (best case) a Barkley, Malone, or Ewing type (beloved franchise player unable to win a ring due to circumstance) or (worst case) a Dominique Wilkins or Pete Maravich type (gifted but selfish scorer who didn’t win because of personal flaws). In either case, I think his resume makes him easily a top 50 player of all time, and arguably top 25. In terms of Rockets history, he should be considered top 3 by almost everybody, which means the McGrady comparisons are absurd. Whatever you think of him personally, his individual and team success over the last 8 years is undeniable, even if you think he should have somehow done even better.
Down the toilet. Everyone outside of Houston seemed to hate Harden......now he as managed to disenfranchise Rocket fans. New team, new setting, start over again.
