It doesn't work that way. None of those guys will care about offseason quotes. If they were about to start a playoff series, that would be a different story.
You know Durant was sitting next to him when he said it right? And the other 2 people he mentioned were as well
They just talked about it on first take. Skip said he'd take Duncan and Dirk over him. Stephen A said he'd take Kobe and Dwade(lol)
It's crazy how one YouTube video can completely change the perception of a player around the country. Even casual fans completely disregard Harden because he doesn't play defense.
Confidence is a good thing to see in a player. Micheal Jordan was very confident and would always say stuff like. "No one can beat me". Same with Ali.
All I know is that if Harden doesn't bring it on defense this season after the eternal criticism he's received this offseason, then he just flat out couldn't care less. I hope he proves everybody wrong, but he's armed them with tons of ammo at least until the season starts.
Why should someone's self-confidence be criticized? Especially considering, in this case, it doesn't affect anyone negatively.
Can't James Harden just shut up and play ball... or just walk out of the interviews like he has done before.
<script src="http://player.espn.com/player.js?&playerBrandingId=4ef8000cbaf34c1687a7d9a26fe0e89e&pcode=1kNG061cgaoolOncv54OAO1ceO-I&width=576&height=324&externalId=espn:11381420&thruParam_espn-ui[autoPlay]=false&thruParam_espn-ui[playRelatedExternally]=true"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Stephen A seemed surprised today when I ranked Tim Duncan above James Harden. Going into next yr, it isn't even close.</p>— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealSkipBayless/statuses/502176013762433024">August 20, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
That only makes sense for 2014 if you're their coach and have only a year or two left on your contract. I'll take another 7-8 more years of Harden over a year or two of Duncan or Dirk.
I have a feeling there's context to this. Notice he only mentioned players from team USA. That can't be a coincidence.
I'll put 100 bucks in the tip jar if theses two knuckleheads on first take arnt claiming harden the 3rd best player in the NBA. Hardens going to to take it to another level this yr defensively and in leadership. KD stepping down is going to help the rockets more than any offseason acquisition outside of lebron. The rockets will be getting a true top 5 player in the game. Even Steven a smith said that if harden brings the defense he's "easily" top 5 in the nba. That's speaks volumes of his talent.
