First of all you include the entire 4th quarter since that is when the game starts to be on the line, which is why people are called Mr. 4th Quarter and not Mr. Last 3 minutes of the game. And second the defense becomes tougher in those situations, which is why efficiency drops.
By comparison, using the exact same criteria (last 3 minutes, behind or tied by 5p or less) Jeremy Lin: 40% overall FG% 50% from 3p Steph Curry 39.9% overall FG% 33.3% from 3p 100% from the charity stripe
It's not like he shoot 2 shots a game and score on half of them. He had a number of big games that where highly efficient when Harden was out. His productivity is limited by him shot attempts not the other way around
Do you remember anything about 4Q of Game 6 of last season's Finals besides Ray Allen's 3 at the end of regulation? Had that shot rimmed out, Spurs would get their 5th ring and Duncan, not LeBron, would be the Finals MVP. Besides, I did limit my search to behind by 5p or less, so it's not like we were being blown out by 20p and I was looking for a miracle savior. This is how Harden performed in tight game situation when we were down by 5p or less, with 3 minutes to play. It's NOT my opinion, it is stats (i.e. facts), whether you like it or not.
the best play was this - rockets up by 1 point with 1:23 to go. harden takes a 3 with two seconds off the shot clock...and bricks it..ahahhahaha
Yes, if you're the guy that ends up having to take the big shots down the stretch then you're stats likely won't be that good. Here's some more using the same criteria as your query: Paul George FG% 11.1% 3pt% 16.7% Carmelo Anthony FG % 12.5% 3pt% 0% Kevin Durant FG% 22.2% 3pt% 30% Kevin Love FG% 25% 3pt% 22.2% If the MVP voting took place today it's likely that Durant, Love and George are all in the top 4 yet they all have lower FG% percentages than Harden. It's a huge difference between players who only take shots when they have a high percentage opportunity and the guys that have to take the shot night in and night out. Kobe is known as a great closer but his percentages in the clutch are similar too for his whole career. http://stats.nba.com/leaguePlayerCl...Last 3 Minutes&sortField=FG_PCT&sortOrder=ASC
BTW using your criteria Spencer Hawes and Shawn Marrion are the two most clutch players in the league with FG% = 100% and 3pt% = 100%.
Don't get so defensive just b.c you got Harden being a Boss in your name. I guess he is a boss since Boss doesn't have any D in it either. Harden said "WE didn't play good defense in the first half", like the entire team didn't. That isn't true. Lin played great D and had Isaiah locked down. That's why it's relevant.
Thank you for pointing out that the statistics alone do not tell the whole story. Player role is very important as the designated closers have to do it every game and against defenses geared to stop them.
I have a new name for James. O'Hare. All O and no D. He has the ability to play good defense every night if he wanted to, but sometimes he takes a day off. That is so frustrating and aggravating to me. You're a max player you need to bring it EVERY night!!!!
Jesus Christ. How does this thread NOT get one star? This is stupid. The Rox wouldn't have even been in the game without him. And how many other games has he been clutch for us? Ask the Spurs about that, eh? Stop complaining. The man isn't going to be on 100% of the time. He scores 38 and you're b****ing that he didn't get a couple more when the game was on the line. Why is he the only option? Stupid.
From your link, Durant: 91.7% from the charity stripe, 0.1 TO Paul George: 85.7% from the charity stripe, 0 TO Carmelo Anthony: 100% from the charity stripe, 0.2 TO Steph Curry: 100% from charity stripe, 0.2TO Harden: 55.6% from the charity stripe, 0.5 TO I have no problem with going to Harden in tight game situation - you go to your best player. But there's got to be a more efficient way to score than dribbling down the shot clock then chucking up a contested 3 or charging into your defender looking for a foul. We were 7-19 last season in those games, and 2-4 so far this season. I feel we should be a better team than that. Perhaps it is on McHale to draw up some plays, I don't know.
I think most everyone would agree that Kevin Durant is one of the most clutch players in the NBA. Take a look at his 4th quarter tonight: 8:03 Score 77-84 Kevin Durant misses 6:22 Score 81-84 Kevin Durant misses 14-foot jumper 1:16 Score 92-90 Kevin Durant misses 25-foot three point jumper 0:59 Score 92-90 Kevin Durant personal foul (Robin Lopez draws the foul) 0:09 Score 94-93 Kevin Durant personal foul (Wesley Matthews draws the foul) 0:08 Score 96-94 Kevin Durant makes free throw 1 of 2 0:08 Score 96-94 Kevin Durant misses free throw 2 of 2 0:03 Score 96-94 Kevin Durant misses 9-foot jumper 0:00 Score 98-94 Kevin Durant misses three point jumper No baskets, 1 free throw made, 1 free throw missed and two fouls. http://espn.go.com/nba/playbyplay?gameId=400489339&period=4 Durant finished with 37pts and 14 reb but since he missed all 3 shots in the last 1:16 while also commiting two fouls then obviously it's his fault that they lost, right? Do you think that the OKC fans are lobbying for Reggie Jackson to take the big shots rather than Durant?
