No they don't. Just on the rockets. Dwight isn't resting on defense. Lebron doesn't rest on defense. Rondo doesn't rest on defense. And if I remember. Dream didn't rest on defense either.
All the LOFs are gone. They all went to the lakers forums. But according to or mod, the lakers forum is actually in a better state at the moment. They were annoying but they weren't the entire problem. Problem is threads getting derailed by people name calling and attacking the poster rather than post about the topic. It's not a new thing either. I remember we had the same problem back in the tmac and Yao days. And I realize that I am off topic. Sorry
Most good exterior on ball defenders are skinny like Beverly. You can live with some loss of defensive quickness in exchange for his strength and durability on offense and rebounding.
I'm very thankful to have Harden on the Rockets. An MVP caliber player and still young. Yes, he needs to play more defense, but the bigs need to box out more and hit their free throws, the three point shooters need to hit their wide open three pointers, their bench needs to be more productive, and the coach needs to be better at coaching. I wish everyone could be as "overtrained" and be as productive as Harden will be for the Rockets this coming season.
I don't think Harden has really had a problem with his fitness. I think there is a perception that he has one because for whatever reason he doesn't have that cut chiseled look that so many who are unqualified believe that is the only look someone in good shape can have. Harden had enough speed, strength and endurance to play more minutes than he should have and be extremely efficient at it while doing it. He had only a few minor injuries, finished while taking contact all the time, and was fast enough to get to the basket even when the defense knew what he was going to do. His conditioning hasn't been a real problem for him. He may not look like an underwear model, but that could be do to posture, genetics, etc. rather than being out of shape.
effectiveness and results makes resting irrelevant League Stats > NBA.com/Stats > Player Opposing Shots 2013-14 Regular Season Per Game By Zone Restricted Area: Harden gives up 13.1 FGM per game to his opponent at 62% FG% Lebron 12.4 FGM 60.8% FG% In the Paint Non-RA: Harden 4 FGM 36.3% FG% Lebron 3.9 FGM 43.5% FG% Mid-Range: Harden 7.1 FGM 36.3% FG% George 7.8 FGM 39.4% FG% Beyond the Arc: Harden 6.5 FGM 34.95% FG% Lebron 6.6 FGM 36.87% FG% http://stats.nba.com/leaguePlayerOp...=FGMZone3&sortOrder=DES&filters=FGAZone3*G*10 Defensive Impact 2013-14 Regular Season Harden 1.6 steals pgm 0.4 blocks pgm 1.3 Opp FGM at Rim pgm 53.8% Opp FG% at Rim LeBron 1.6 steals pgm 0.3 blocks pgm 1.4 Opp FGM at Rim pgm 51.9% Opp FG% at Rim http://stats.nba.com/playerTrackingDefense.html?pageNo=1&rowsPerPage=25&sortField=STL&sortOrder=DES
The "Player Opposing Shots" include every shot the opposing team attempts while the player is on the court (NOT only the shots by the single opponent the player defends) and thus doesn't say much about an individual players' defense. For example, the stats you wrote down just tell me that the Rockets as a team (when Harden is on the floor) hold their opponents to a lower 3PT% than the Heat (when James is on the floor). Also, I don't think the second comparison ("Defensive Impact") tells much about Harden. Of course his opponents don't attempt as many shots inside as LeBron's: First, LeBron plays SF/PF, of course his opponents attempt more shots inside; second, the Rockets had Howard and Asik, the Heat didn't have a real rim protector. The only thing I took from these stats is how outstanding a defender Eric Bledsoe is, holding his opponents to 41,5% at the rim without a good defensive bigman is really impressive. There are more elaborate stats like xRAPM to calculate the impact a single player has on his team, and Harden's defensive number from last season is terrible: Link He wasn't nearly as bad the years before, his number has dropped every season thus far though.
