If we win 23 games in a row, is Harden better than T-Mac?

Except that he wasn't. You could say there was not a Curry or Harden in that specific era.

Tmac was among the Top 10 in that specific era. You had a chucker like Kobe, you had Duncan and KG.

Tmac was just a freak of nature (his wingspan was like Durant or exceeded just that of a Mini King Kong) that never unfolded all of his potential.

Tmac could have played temporary PF if he knew how to bulk up the right way.

He was 6'9 and had hops, knew how to facilitate.

 

I voted yes, but he's already better in my opinion

 

I'll give you the thing about knee injuries, but let's not get crazy here... When McGrady was healthy (as rare as that may have been), even in his deteriorating state, he wasn't that much worse than Harden. A less efficient scorer, for sure, but he DEFINITELY made everybody around him better, and every non-box-score stat in the world proves it... as does the good ol' "eye test". And at his best, he was truly a lockdown defender, too. Anyone else remember what he did to Dirk in the '05 playoffs? (Yes, we lost since we had no answer for Terry) Remember what he did for us almost EVERY YEAR in the playoffs? He could basically play at least four out of five positions, and play them well. He was a Lebron-lite in that regard.

I think in today's NBA, McGrady would have developed better range, too, but who knows. His knee/back problems are probably a big part of why his shooting efficiency took such a big hit in the 2nd half of his career.

McGrady had a bit more natural talent than Harden (if we're including size and athleticism)... but, mostly thanks to injuries, he just couldn't ever quite put it all together. And Harden, as a result, has now established himself as a noticeably better player, that I can't (and don't want to) deny.

 

Harden is better than Mac even if we don't win that many in a row...this is like a tinman bait thread, c'mon.

 

LOL @ LOF & TOF

 

Harden is miles better than Houston T-Mac.

Now he is pretty on par with Orlando T-Mac, but only because Orlando T-Mac was an incredible scorer.

 

Go away

 

+1 just for using "Maestro" in your vote.

 

Harden already better than TMac with or without 23+ wins in a row

 

2016 Squad > TMac & Yao

 

McGrady never played in all 22 games and he never won a playoff series with the Rockets, not a single one

 

I think Harden is right now a better player than Tmac was at his age. Harden, after he finishes his career will be the best Rocket ever. I hope he wins a championship, but as I wrote before, he needs to be more focused during games. The lack of focus in certain games will prob cost him a championship or two

 

Can we win tomorrow first???????????????????

 

but Harden has been a way better Houston Rocket than McGrady ever was here...a 23 game win streak doesnt need to justify that

 

So you proved my point

 

Harden is better. If you're drafting one of these two in their prime, Harden goes first.

If T-Mac has half the mindfulness of Harden to sculpt and refine his game and voluntarily develop leadership skills, he would be an all time great.

They could not be more different. Harden is an average NBA athlete who was given nothing and earned everything. T-Mac had a lot of natural talent but pissed it away by never becoming more efficient or developing his leadership skills. Leadership is not about saying things like "I'm glad to be in the 2nd round" or "it's on me". Leadership is coming off a disappointing season looking like an MMA fighter, playing defense although you suck at it and you're exhausted, and buying into data and information that management is compiling for you. That's f'ing leadership.

I will say T-Mac gave us some great moments, but it was always going to be Yao who was going to take us to the promise land. T-Mac was the second star we needed, pouring in points off the attention Yao demanded down low. Sure, the media and T-Mac believed that he was the star of the team, but the truth is Yao carried us. Yao was our Harden. Yao even took us to the second round, but unfortunately that came to a tragic end.

 

I'm not trying to prove any point. I only state the truth because TOFs are liars

 

I find this to be ridiculous. Tmac most definitely made those around him better and he had far less to work with during his time in Orlando and Houston. Is Harden better than Tmac at this point? They're both incredibly gifted offensive players -- with two very different styles. I would say Harden is a better shooter than Tmac, but Tmac was a better driver. Also, Harden is more efficient because he seeks fouls, whereas Tmac wouldn't drive in looking for free throws and tried to avoid contact.

Tmac played in a different era too. The high volume offensive weapons like Kobe and Tmac aren't as prevalent in today's NBA. Not to mention Tmac was never dogged about playing absolutely no defense. They're both fantastic players.

 

Career FG% 0-3 feet from the basket :

Tmac : 58.2%
Harden : 63.2%

Harden is the better driver and slasher. Period. Tmac is similar to Westbrook in that he seems like a great finisher around the rim due to incredible athleticism, but actually is pretty mediocre.

 

Dwight has taken us to the WCF

Dwight > Yao


/troll

Harden is already a better Rocket than T-Mac. McGrady, when he was in shape and healthy was one of the toughest guys to guard according to many great NBA players and defenders. The problem was he was never motivated to be in shape and I think exaggerated some of his injuries (VC trade deadline).

Also, today's NBA is much softer (with the handcheck rule). So I will always value Hakeem's scoring and triple doubles more than Harden's because he did it when points were much harder to come by.