"Carried" them to a 1-4 loss to the Warriors? I don't get why people don't want to admit that Harden is a superstar that is gonna need a lot of help to get this team a championship. I mean, look at Lebron, he freaking joined 2 stars to help him win 2 rings. Harden isn't the Dream, who I consider the only superstar to carry his team to multiple rings.
LOL@ Makes teammates better.. He has haf better teammates... That's an intangible and he's not elite there.. we're talking specific aspects of ball. Let me help you out.... Do you know what elite is? Not solid... Not good.... ELITE. Russ is not an elite finisher... Elite driver yes... Not an elite finisher. Russ is not an elite ball handler. Russ is not an elite mid-range shooter. Kawhi is not an elite scorer. Not elite at free throws... Shoots a good %.. doesn't make enough.. If he can keep it up going forward for more than one season, then we can call him an elite 3pt shooter. Harden is an elite rebounder for his position too then. Bball IQ is an immeasurable... Harden also is a high IQ player. No one said they aren't great players with great aspects to their games.
Agreed he needs the help for sure. They tried to get him the necessary help but came up short each time. Would have been sweet if we could've landed LaMarcus but Pop and Spurs pitch was so much better.
Harden definitely would have made the Warriors worse off. Can you imagine harden constantly moving off ball the way curry and Klay do?
Russ is one of the best finishers in the game. Man are you serious. Everybody on this site along with players that actually played this game can attest to that Air Canada. Russ handles are just as good as Harden. They're actually equal in that department. Leonard offensive game took a major leap forward this season. People were saying Harden was elite year 1 in Houston. So why can't Kawhi be considered elite in that department. Plus his defense is much better. Always guarding the best perimeter player and still put up damn good numbers on offense. I agree Harden's IQ is elite but those bone headed pocket passes makes you wonder sometimes.
KD wasn't that impactful the entire playoffs, WB carried his ass. If you don't admit this you didn't watch the series. I watched every single game in the Spurs and GS series, the memories are clear. WB was clearly the better player. Even in the last 3 games Durant didn't do much
Really? What was all this help Harden had in WCF that year? He was carrying the team. Who said he never choked? Your post put Russ over them both with this as large part to your reasoning. Russ choked in game 5, 6, and 7 of the WCF.... Chucked up more bricks than KD... And set the record for turnovers in a WCF SERIES.... KD just outdid him in game 6. Take into account he plays with a superstar perimeter player.... Harden doesn't.
I'd rather have Kawhi than Harden. That's no knock on harden, who is a great player. But kawhi gives you best in league defense and effort with elite offense. If I were to start a team and assumed everyone had top leadership skills... Lebron Durant Curry Kawhi Chris Paul Harden Westbrook
What if Harden doesn't take over in the fourth of game 2? The series is already over. What if Harden doesn't go off in game 5 with that triple dub? There is no game 6. Guess what came after that game 6? Game 7... Final elimination game.... Guess what happens if they lost that one? Lol... Smoove and Brewer don't get all credit for winning a series they only showed up for one half of when Harden was the driving force behind the other 3 wins.. two of which were also elimination games.
Guess there's a lot of casuals out there who base their view of his game from highlight plays.... Watch more of his actual games or get ball streams or something. Russ is typically sub 60% at the rim... Harden is typically well over 60%. Russ is an athletic finisher, but below league average... Not elite. Not elite doesn't equate to bad you know. This man nailed it right here: Russ handles are not on Harden's level... LOL. Harden is an elite ball handler... He actually uses his handle and an assortment of dribble moves effectively to create space for his jumper and pr get to the lane. Russ has solid handles... He uses his speed and explosiveness to create or get his shot... Yes and he's a good scorer.... He's not elite... Not even Harden year 1 in Houston elite... That's not even a question..... His defense and mid-range jumper are elite yes and his rebounding.
Completely untrue... KD had some great performances against SA as did Russ.... Russ was great in going up 3-1 KD was great as well outside one game and then both proceeded to choke.... If you don't think Russ choked in each of the last three games you weren't paying attention. He didn't just shoot worse.... Turnover over more at a record level... He also played piss poor defense aiding in the collapse.
Elite perimeter defense doesn't come close to the value and worth of elite perimeter offense. Some foolishly think perimeter defense has a similar value or is equal to perimeter offense when that couldn't be further from the truth... Yet the opposite can be said when referring to big men and interior defense. The center spot is probably the only position where defensive worth is comparable to offense and it very well may be more valuable there... When talking about big men.
Everyone has their own lists for their own reasons. Not going to argue with anyone as everyone has a right to their opinion. Harden's only the 4th player in NBA history to avg 29 PPG, 7 APG, 6 RPG in a season. If we're talking recent production, he's a top 2 player based on that alone. Russ is not better than Harden, not right now at least. We'll see this coming season when he doesn't have KD and the opposing team's defense is designed to stop him and him only.
Howbout rank the guys (except for lebron) you add to the sixers which would have given them the most wins? If you’re choosing a shooting guard，if you are to choose one，do you go with an elite scorer and playmaker like harden or an elite defender like tony allen?
Top 10 yes, top 5 no. Actually I don't think any one-way player should ever be included in a list like this. Harden should be held to the highest of standards and there's a lot of players I'd pick over Harden because they play both sides of the ball well as opposed to great on one side.
For someone to say Russ has elite handles and that his handles are as good as Harden.... To say that they're equal in that department... They either don't watch basketball or don't understand what they're viewing.
