It was temporary. Not only that, he didn't move off the ball last year either. He does 0 to help his team when he doesnt have the ball. Doesnt set screens, doesnt cut, he doesnt make the defense keep an eye on him off ball.
A bit harsh to put it all on Harden. I think everybody kinda sucks this year with the exception of Dwight over the last few games
You know what makes great teams great? You notice how the spurs can plug in their system and it works? Its the belief in the system by everyone is what makes it special. If MJ,pippen,kobe,shaq,and pau never believed in the triangle, phil wouldn't have his rings. If steph and company didn't believe in Kerr system, they wouldn't have become a great offensive team even though they struggled under jackson offensively. Bottomline, whatever system you have, your best player has to lead and buy into it, nothing is going to work. Buying in and leading means doing the little things. The little things leads to big things.
You don't need to sift through stats to "dig up TS%", TS% is basic for people with half a brain Harden isn't perfect, but at only 26 years old I'd say his maturity is pretty much as can be expected from a normal human being, he isn't a leader like TD but at least he isn't a dumbass like De Andre Jordan or have mental issues like Whiteside. By now we know Harden's personality, he won't be the type of guy who would lead the team but at the same time he's also someone who can change and be influenced, his improved D last year and the leadership during the summer shows he reacts to positive influences. This is a far cry from Me-lo who has not improved 1 iota from his rookie year and has shown a tendency to prioritize money again and again and again. I watched the JSmith game and the game prior to the 2 game losing streak and I saw Harden working on D, he's not nearly as bad as you guys are making him out to be its just that his shot isn't falling so his energy isn't good. At the end of the day you can b**** about Harden not being MJ all you want but this is like going to your wife and asking her why isn't she as hot as Gigi Hadid. What's the point except complaining and being a dick? Its not like you can trade Harden and get Kevin Durant in return LMAO. We work with what we got, and right now we got Howard and Harden. This is totally a dumb thread and reminds me of DD's trade Howard thread at the beginning of the year. Nowadays CF has been so toxic it could be labeled Clutch Haters instead. You hate the franchise players, you hate the coach, you hate the role players, you hate the GM, you hate the owner...why don't you guys do everyone a favor and follow another team? You can't claim to love a sports team but then hate every individual component of it lmao
As leebigez points out, the key will be to get a disciplinarian coach who gets to Harden. The single biggest failure of the Rockets organization is to not have done that yet.
Harden/coaching staff is the reason Lawson struggled and got scared to do anything. He has been shooting better as of late but his lack of defense/brains/maturity/bballiq has put the deepest dent in the team. Smith is our most valuable player right now, just look what happened last game.. that is the kind of play we should expect from the rest of the team especially our "super star"
Yet you blame harden for not having a system?....You seem to contradict yourself here, players you mentioned had a system in place to help them succeed and reach their highest potential, unlike here where we expect harden to create almost all of the offense on his own. Things you stated are true, but dont act as if we suddenly have the spurs coaching staff, i guarantee you that would mean 6-8 more wins automatically. While harden is an annoying figure to understand, his willingness to get better and win can be seen with his improvements over the last 3 years, to question his desire is unfounded and straight out ignorant. James harden is the least of our problems so you and the other posters should stop this nonsense and hope for improved shooting, communication on D, overall structure of both offense and defense
You missed my point entirely. This is a thread referring to his character and the first thing somebody does is post a stat to reflect his offensive efficiency. I won't get into the debate of why its a poor measure, but certain unquantifiable aspects of the game are so crucial they do make or break the outlook of a player. Its the irony of what has played out in the process of discussing something beyond the numbers, that the people supporting him display when the first and only thing they can do is -----> TS%. If everything was so cut and dry, you wouldn't need the human element.
Eloquently put, at least. I find myself thinking the same thing a lot of the time. It's a rollercoaster with Harden.
great post by the op. there are brilliant individual players, and then there are great players that also make their teammates and teams play better. and many criticisms towards harden are not personal per se. hope some will understand that. for me, i have never liked harden about his style of play or his personality. but i have nothing against him. just try to tell what i've observed and thought/felt. otoh, he's still a brilliant talent after all. i just wish he's more motivated by the team concept.
Leeb, great thread, been saying the same. Harden is the problem and the solution, but it will take him maturing, which may or may not happen. DD
Harden shot poorly in the first month, it has improved every month since......... the only thing that is hurting his fg percentage was his first 5-10 games where he shot bad, since then he would be around 45 percent
I usually despise negative "what's the point of watching games anymore" posts. But you do have a point with Hardens leadership. Yet and still the season is not over and harden is just entering his prime. Of course we are no competition for GS at this point but we should never give up!!! Clutch city part one was a prime example of a talented team that looked down and out but put it together just in time. Harden is not Hakeem of course but you never know what could happen...
its not about Harden shooting.... its , dribbling the ball for 19-22 seconds and passing it to Ariza.... its the stupid bounce pass between 2 defenders that lead to easy points....its when the Rockets have momentum him jacking up 2-3 covered 3's instead of running the offense... its his unwillingness to cut to the basket or backdoor.... or move from beyond the 3pt arc when he doesnt have the ball ^major keys
I've played most of my amateur career without a real PG. Selfish SG was "playmaking" and it always destroyed me from the inside withing very first minutes of the game. You underestimate what it means to other guys who give their heart out when Harden does this crap game in and game out. You just give up on everyone. Great thread
Eye test confirms that last year guys were diving for every ball, fighting for every possession. Not this year. Lack of transition defense. It all makes sense. Last year guys gave their souls to achieve what they did. Even the historic comeback happened with Harden sitting through entire duration of it. And when most of the credit for last season went to Harden, other guys said **** it. It makes sense.
i don't know where the "Melo is a lazy ball-hog" story-line came from. It's not close to true, he's just had some bad teams and some bad luck with injuries.
