i hope the team as an org doesnt have this school of thoughts. because if they do, this team will remain the way it has been, which is quite hopeless.
You're basically saying you can't build a team around James then. So, might as well get rid of him, too, huh? Compared to what the rest of the team put forth this season, James is relatively blameless. It may be a bit of an overstatement...but the Rockets would be so much worse without him.
You can build the team around Harden if he is willing to play defense. Of course Rockets would be much worse without Harden, that's why he gets paid max. However, Rockets would be much better if he tries to play defense. It doesn't matter what other players do in a long run, they can be replaced easily. But Harden is the cornerstone. If he is not even trying on one end of the floor,the team is never going to achieve anything significant no matter what coach and players you put around him.
thanks for answering for me. it's not just the way he plays defense. it's the drive and motivation he has (or the lack thereof). playing lazy defense and stat padding etc are just reflections of his mentality. i am willing to give him a yr or 2, and see if he will change. ideally he changes for good, along with all the changes we're supposed to put in place around him this summer. if not, then i'd happily see him go.
Harden is a superstar; a top level player and I think it is foolhardy to trade him. That being said, I also think he's immature and a poor leader. His inability to seem to even "try" to play defense, his mental collapses, his general "give up" shoulder sag (him and 2nd-half-season Dwight) GREATLY affect the team in a negative way. I don't have many doubts about that. On the other end of the spectrum, Tim Duncan is seen as a future HOF great not only for his playing prowess, but his dedication, non-vocal leadership (through showing and doing) and mental toughness. Some leaders are like Kobe, whose style works for some yet fails for others. /shrugs Harden is just not a very effective leader. He is a GREAT player, but we need another star with him (not Dwight), pref. one that the team can draw inspiration from. Sometimes a fantastic coach can substitute that, so that could work, too. There just has to be someone that everyone listens to, fights for and rallies behind.
I think you're spot on with your analysis. Hopefully, growing more mature, or getting a really good coach, or both, can remedy some of these issues.
I agree with all your points. And, in fact, this team would likely be an entirely different make up of players if Harden wasn't on the team. And, without a player like Harden trying to seemingly "do it all" offensively, the players would have to play more team-oriented basketball and these players would have to be able to create scoring opportunities aside from just hanging around the three point line. So, good or bad, we're obviously talking about a different team and offense without Harden. So far at least, the right players are not there to compliment Harden's game and it may very well be Harden is just not a player that can thrive in more of a team-oriented offense. It seems he always needs the ball in his hands and this leads to other players being less involved and watching. Defense is another story for another time but obviously he has been a liability there much of the time.
as much as people hated Kobe for his bricking and arrogance he came through to most of his teammates, instilled confidence in the role players That is what a leader has to do Give role players confidence when they are not making a shot, to shoot better, continue to shoot good shots Harden is very lacking in that leadership department (too much ego) this is very important and undervalued aspect of the game
Hiding his emotions behind a beard and letting old Terry guarantee wins is not an option always talking the good talk to the media (we are good, GSW is not that good) passing to teammates on the court to fake interest in them, but off the court rarely talks to them about basketball and strategy
I think I need to point out that Harden had nothing to lead. You can encourage and pat people on the back all you want but if they suck there's nothing you can do. You guys are trying to search for answers and all you end up with is it's Harden's fault basically because it's easy to do right. Blame Harden he's the leader? You can't blame the only guy producing. Some players regress and that's what happened we had a lot of player regression coupled with a coaching staff that didn't want to admit it. So when they were given help they barely used it. The only leadership fails we had came mostly from coaching and it's inability to adjust quickly to changes, something a lot of us have pointed out about this coaching staff years ago. Don't blame Harden for a poor job done by teammates and coaches.
I pointed this out months ago and was called a Harden lover or only fan, lol. It's the truth though. Harden's defense has always been a problem so when people try to cite that as the reason we are not as good as last year it just doesn't fit. Dwight, Bev, Ariza, Brewer, these guys all regressed or became complacent.
Our current make up is more a result of Dwight than Harden. A team geared toward Harden has bigs that like to pick and role and players that can actually shoot.
