Harden: "Dwight and I are the cornerstones of the Rockets. The rest of the guys are role players..."

I really hope Harden's comments don't alienate the rest of the players.

He seems to be taking Morey's philosophy that teammates are nothing
more than assets.

 

Zoinks.

It's nice that Harden believes that he and Howard are the ones who are going to ultimately be the biggest factors in winning or losing. However, referring to your team mates as "role players or pieces" is Not a good choice from a leadership perspective.

Grunts in the army Know that sometimes they're just fodder. The Generals also know that sometimes the grunts need to be cannon fodder. However, nobody wants or needs to be reminded of that fact, and the best leaders go out of their way to NOT remind people of that fact.

Most of us are just "cogs" in the machine at work... we know that's our roles. We do NOT need to be reminded of that fact, and in fact when our bosses go out of their way to try to make us feel important, needed or special is when we're most likely to put forth extraordinary effort or sacrifice for the team.

There's a ton of ways that Harden could have said that better... I'm hoping this is more about him being a bit immature vs clueless.

 

Honestly, Harden has been saying "this is my team" for a long time... Taking responsibility is different from being dismissive of your teammates' contribution.

 

He is merely repeating what Morey says to him everyday. DH is the real deal. JH? A star created by the rocket management to sell tickets... I do not see how you guys can defend what Harden said...

 

For all the mental midgets and whiners out there, you think Arita would have turned does moreys offer because harden called him a role player?

 

Yeah... They will play tough D so that Harden can use all his energy on offense and be the cornerstone and say his teammates are pieces that do not matter...

This team had a leadership problem.. Now It is about to get even worse...
Harden is not mature... He might be once his contract with Rocket is over...

 

you can have the best starting five scoring but it's not going to get you far if you don't have at least a middle of the pack bench. It's still early on harden so 'we will just have to see' but he is closing in on a very familiar rocket who is used to the 'finer things'.

 

I think Ariza will be happy to take his offer, have a good rest and wait to play good game when his contract year comes. Why not?

Do not tell others to tough up and swallow it when you are the one who messed up... Especially your reputation is worst liability on the defense

 

Welcome to the world of Harden Fan Boys...

 

We got nothing lose. We have him in his prime. If he sucks we can ship him out like Tracy.

I would have even traded Yao in his injury years.

 

I dont remember reading any pieces on JHarden's take on his
performance in the playoffs.

Would be an interesting read just to see if his view matches what
the general consensus is.

Anybody?

I googled but couldnt find anything.
Just pieces by other people commenting on his level of play.

 

CP2.5 is obviously hurt by this kind of BS. Lin is hurt by that as well... Asik did not say it in words but spoke out in actions ..

Folks, regardless of whether you like those three players, you have to acknowledge that these kind of comments from a teammate are definitely not helping.

 

Messed up what? Harden turned this franchise around not parsons not lin

 

You think Cassell would chuck a tantrum and be 'offended' if the Rockets went after someone of John Stockton's status?

 

It doesn't matter if we should or shouldn't be offended by what he said. It doesn't matter if what he said is true. All that matters is whether his teammates will be offended by it, because that's the only thing that can affect our ability to win.

Once you think about it in the proper context.. yes, what he says shows that he is holding himself to a higher standard, but it is also likely to demoralize his teammates who may see themselves as budding stars or more than just role players or pieces.

The whole world might think you're just another employee and the CEO of your company is all that really matters. You might think you're a budding star at your work place. When someone comes in and labels you as just another piece, you will be one of two things:

1) offended and demoralized
2) motivated to prove them wrong

It is best to try to prove people wrong and it shows great character of course. But that does NOT change the fact that you may have been someone who was on course to be incrementally productive in the future and this appraisal of your status wrecked that progression at least temporarily.

We had Harden and Howard last season. We can expect incremental improvements from them. But where our season lives and dies is by the role players now. That's going to be the difference between first round exit or not. There has never been a worse time for Harden to express this thought with these exact words. Part of the reason Parsons left is because he did not feel like the team recognized his importance. We don't want that idea to infect the squad, and these words from Harden may do just that.

It's not about how he could have said it. It's about what he thinks - and the way he talks about role players reminds me of how Allen Iverson used to talk about practice. That's not a good thing.

 

What's the difference between him saying this and T-mac saying "it's all on me"?

 

Wow. I can't believe how sensitive you guys are being about this.

I took this as a shot toward the newest little pony who last season said he'd sign for a reasonable amount if he was let out of his contract early and then wanted to make more than money than Harden, proclaimed himself a star, and signed a contract full of poison pills. Parsons bailed and showed zero loyalty. He deserves to take a few shots.

The players on the team are young guys and vet role players. They know Harden and Howard are the stars. The only people that would be upset by this would be Parsons (too bad) or Lin (blameless but on another team now) or Asik (who wanted to be on another team for the last year). The rest of the team knows they have a role to play and that if the team doesn't get it done, they will be the ones to be traded - not Harden and Howard.

Do you think Ariza doesn't know he's a role player? d-Mo, T-Jones, Beverly? These are grown men for crying out loud. There is nothing wrong with being a role player in the NBA and making millions of dollars. Since when is that a bad thing?

Yes, ideally Harden would have chosen better words, but I was just happy to hear that this is his state of mind, and that he and Howard are on the same page.

 

Yep 100% agree

 

Or offense (in the playoffs)

 

Harden will probably never be a good perimeter defender. Aside from the ridiculous attitude, he is not long, athletic or quick enough.