Like how Al Harrington and the lottery Hawks used to kill ad sweep the Rockets. Losing team playing loose.
Definitely not. I like Harden a lot but he ain't at that level, yet. It's possible he gets there down the line. The problem is Scott Brooks holds him back. Regarding Kevin Love, he's won me over completely. After a lockout, the guy comes into the season in the best shape of his career, significantly improves and keeps it going after signing his big contract extension. He is a legit superstar.
Hardin is a sleeping giant. He is going make the same jump in production Tmac did when he got the reins in Orlando. If I was Morey this summer I would offer Martin, picks what ever it take to get Hardin from OKC. When he hits the Market even as an restricted free agent some one is going to offer the max. And I don't see how the thunder will be able match
So you're comparing Love to Harrington. Love is a great player, he's just considered a loser stat-padder because he's been with a joke of a franchise his first three seasons. They finally got some legit talent with Rubio and some real structure with Adelman and they were playing winning basketball until Rubio got hurt. It's not that easy to win without Rubio AND Pekovic you know. They're not a deep team like Houston or Denver where their next man up is a legitimate good NBA starter. The healthy Wolves will be a really good team next season, with Love as their best player.
Brandon Roy, 2008-2010 (ages 24/25) per-36 minutes: 21.4ppg / 4.4rpg / 4.8apg / 1.0stl / 1.9tov 15.9 FGA / 3.0 3PA / 6.4 FTA 0.477 / 0.354 / 0.803 27.1% Usage James Harden, 2011-12 (age 22) per 36 minutes: 19.2ppg / 4.7rpg / 4.2apg / 1.1stl /2.5tov 11.6 FGA / 5.4 3PA / 7.0 FTA 0.480 / 0.380 / .839 21.6% Usage He might be a shade behind, but he looks to be right on the cusp, and at a younger age.
He's more than a shade behind despite the similar stat lines, which don't tell the whole story. Roy was the main focus of the defense 100% of the time he was on the floor and he rarely played against reserve units. Roy carried a huge burden game-after-game-after-game. Not so for Harden. I'm not saying Harden won't get there.
Someone is going to offer the max to Harden and OKC is going to have a serious decision to make between Ibaka, Harden, and westbrook.
Aldridge isn't Durant any more than Andre Miller is Westbrook, but that team wasn't without talent or additional playmaking. It wasn't a Kobe on the post-Shaq Lakers situation. I agree about Harden's stats being somewhat inflated by going against 2nd units, but he plays in crunch time, and he almost plays starter minutes.
I've always said that James Harden would be an all-star if he weren't in the shadows of KD and Westbrook (Not bad shadows to be in). He has one of the smoothest, effortless looking games in the league. And is probably the best passer on the team. They looked lost against Dallas in the playoffs last year when they didn't have Harden setting up the offense.
i hope that they stay together as a team. they are fun to watch and much more fun to root for then the Heat. (also so my predicition that all three will be in the HOF together)
I watched the Blazers almost every game in those days and saw Brandon Roy develop. The burden he carried on their offense was extreme. Don't let the PPG mislead you. Teams keyed on him severely, especially in crunch time and the way he efficiently closed games was spectacular. Because it was the Blazers, Roy didn't get anywhere near the recognition he deserved. Aldridge played little like he does now. Most of what he got was PnR, pick-and-pop from Roy or hockey assist indirectly from Roy. He was mostly a jump-shooter and didn't post-up on isolations very often at all. A lot of people ripped the Blazers for giving him the huge extension. The Blazers had almost no running game under Nate McMillan back then and milked Roy for everything. Travis Outlaw, Martell Webster, Steve Blake, Rudy Fernandez weren't chopped liver, but I wouldn't call them playmakers. I love Harden but let's not get ridiculous.
its very different though. what if brandon roy was coming off the bench for the thunder at age 22. and harden was on that same blazers team during his prime of age 24 and 25. harden could maybe have the potential of putting up 28 o 29 points a game with more assists, you just dont know.
All I said was Harden, right now, isn't near Brandon Roy at his peak. He's still growing. A couple of years from now, let's see. Last season, a guy here was still insisting Harden was a bust. We don't know yet where he will level off.
Exactly, you just don't know. You can't use PER 36 minutes or whatever to predict how he would do. You don't know if he was teh number one option and defenses prepared for him and he lpayed more minutes and was relied to create more shots if he would do the same thing consistently or drop off. Same arguments applies to you, stats have way too many holes factors that don't translate over
