And here I thought being a two-way player was another way of saying as a player plays defense at the same level as their offense. I assume you mean that Harden's defense is poor because he saves energy for offense. In that case, I think he should still strive to develop his D just as other top players have and do.
Assuming good chemistry with teammates already, I subscribe to JVG's philosophy that offense is talent and defense is effort. My main concern is that if Harden plays too hard on both ends, he'll tire himself out and become more injury prone. And building bulk to combat this, as McGady have shown, can a backfire. Honestly, the last thing I want Harden to do is to go 100% before he learns pace himself, like most superstars learn to do as they age.
Harden is great, Parsons and Asik are good, we need to hit on a lotto pick and a max FA signing for PF and PG. Then let Morey do his magic to fill out the bench.
He played well in the first 3 quarters but I still don't like his decision-making down the stretch. I am looking forward to seeing his improvement in clutch time.
Chemistry don't get developed in a few games. It takes months or even years to develop a good chemistry among teammates.
If we get a future all star in the draft and sign a worthy max player I believe we are set for the future... But both things are incredibly difficult. Still, thanks for your post I actually feel a bit better about the future of the team now - at least now I see a plan that could make us a title contender and that is at least possible...
james harden is legit. just wait til morey can pair him with a scoring big man... he'll be even better.
James Harden takes a lot of bad tough shots, it looks good when it goes in but looks really bad when it does'nt go in. sometime he would attack the basket 1 on 3 .. hero ball.
That's what happens when your other starters are Omer Asik, Patrick Patterson, Chandler Parsons, and Eremy Lin.
When James Harden was in Oklahoma he came off the bench and played against other teams 2nd unite but now he is playing against other teams 1st unite , don't be surprise if he struggle. he sometimes takes bad tough shots and silly turnover because of hero ball that's because of poor judgement not because of your teammates.
please Lin was just a band aid... because you couldnt get Howard... now that you have Harden, Harden is the cornerstone of this franchise... and a better bet over Howard Lin was an if he dosent work out we can trade him in 3 years time... and guy you are trying to make into a Shooting Guard rather than a Point Guard...
why not many of you long time posters have stepped away from your brains... probably think this is still the same awesome team that almost made the playoffs last year
when he has a legitimate equal to him on the team in terms of production he will be able to spend energy in a more balanced manner on the offensive and defensive ends.. As will the other guy. This will make the team so much better. right now I think he knows that he has to devote a large percentage of his effort on the offensive end. This doesn't excuse his poorly thought passes and dribbling into traps. His overall game will elevate as he plays a more balanced game. Ultimately, he's not a LeBron who can go 100% on both ends. Who is, really? But he's definitely a potential superstar impact player when he isn't the ONLY guy on a team at that talent level. Now Jeremy Lin has shown that talent spark. Time will tell if he can grow in his new role. I'm fairly confident he can
Harden played 31.4 minutes/game last season, do you really think that he was playing against other teams second units the entire time?
