I like how Zach Lowe doesn't put Harden on his list because of his mediocre team, only to put Towns on his 3rd team.
I think Lowry and Lillard will get the nods before Harden and deservedly so. The last spot will come down to between Thompson and Harden and Thompson will get the spot. 73 wins.
Lol at deservedly so. I mean if that's the case might as well just call the award "did your team do well" award. Here's where Harden was better than Lowry. Points, assists, rebounds, FG%, 3 pt FG%, FT %, all of those stats on a per possession basis as well, offensive rating, win share, win share/48, PER, VORP... well, it's a pointless exercise. Cause certainly Lowry wins some categories, too. Defense and turnovers are the obvious. The argument against Lillard is much the same. But it seems overkill to repeat the same mantra over and over again as if it is the sole thing to point to. I mean, I too wish Harden would stop turning the ball over and play better defense. Moreover, NBA writers, media, etc. are always so selective about the whole defense thing. Kyrie Irving made the 3rd team last year. Damian Lillard made it the year before. I think its fine to move Harden down. I just don't see how he is below Klay, Lowry, Lillard, etc. If I were to ask myself would I prefer any of those guys over Harden, the answer is no. Would I prefer any of those guys this season only results over Harden. The answer is no. Mix with other players aside (eg. in Toronto, the mix with Derozan obviously isn't ideal), do I think the Rockets have a better record with any of those players instead of Harden? Definitely, definitely not. Do I think the other teams have a worse record with Harden? The only one even remotely questionable, imo, is Klay, only because that is so much about the fit with the Warriors, and where Klay's 3&D capabilities are important to that team... but on the whole the answer is the same. The best guards in the NBA have unquestionably been - Steph, Westbrook, CP3. Next is Harden. Next is Lillard. The final spot is a toss-up between Klay, Lowry and Isaiah Thomas. Bear in mind Lillard and Thomas are also both negative defenders, especially Lillard. But he got Portland into the 6th seed!!! So? a 44-38 team that has a dynamic two guard attack and super solid coaching in a bad Western Conference outside the top 4 teams. That doesn't make him a better player than Harden, nor did he have a better season.
I like how all of these people focus on all these nice offensive stats when defense is half the game Lowry and CP3 play elite defense at their position. The argument is Lillard, Harden or Klay.
Lowry actually shot .388% and Harden shot .359% from deep. Also the western conf. being weak this season can also be used against Harden. Other than that, I agree with you. Overall, Harden carries a heavier burden on scoring than Lillardwho has a consistent scorer in McCollum, and has overall better stats. He deserves at-least a spot on the 3rd team for sure.
And offense is the other half of the game. I don't buy the argument that Lowry, for example, is so much better a defender over Harden in a way that impacts winning that it counters how much better an offensive player Harden is then Lowry. I'm cherry-picking, sure, and it's against the Warriors, but Steph put up 37 and 44 against the Raptors, on a combined 14-25 three point shooting. I've never heard the word elite use with Lowry's defense, but will give him credit as a positive defender. And will note that defense at the point is as much if not more about team concepts than stopping the PG against you. With Harden's, its consistency more than anything. The defense lapses are what kill him, both on the court and in the court of public opinion. And while it's crazy to consider, Harden actually had some fairly stout defensive play the last few weeks. He wasn't horrible defensively all year. But even factoring in defense, I don't see how Lowry, Lillard or Klay should be ranked above Harden.
This season Lowry/Lillard have played better than Harden. It's important to be a leader not just put up stats. Rockets have a .500 record this year. Harden came into camp out of shape and played awful for the first 2 months of the year. He got his coach fired. He bears the responsibility for this catastrophic season, just like he deserved all of the praise for last season.
Lol, the Rockets finished the season 3 games worse than the Blazers. The Spurs were 6 games worse than the Warriors as a comparison ... we're not talking about different leagues here. The Rockets swept the Raptors this year. What does that mean?? I don't know... I just know it has little bearing on who played better for the whole year. That was Harden, and not just because of stats.
Lowry finished only .008 WS/48 behind Harden, and he did it on a good team in a tougher conference while sharing the ball with a high usage isolation scorer in DeRozan.
I keep seeing this notion of the west being weaker than the east thrown around in this thread. The west was 232-218 versus the east this year. The west is still better than the east, just to a lesser degree. Would love to see the records of Charlotte, Indiana, and Detroit if they had to play a western conference schedule.
Well he missed out like I predicted. Not sure who the idiots are. Those who know basketball and predicted this or the blind kool aid slurpers.
29.0 ppg / 7.5 assists / 6.1 rebounds only a small handful of players in the history of the NBA have ever accomplished that, but... He plays for Houston so voters don't care. I smell a huge ****-all stinky rat.
We get it you don't like Harden. There have been players who made All-NBA who weren't known for playing defense, even this year and there will be in years to come. You put up stats like Harden does, no way you should not make it (efficiently at that). This is about individual talent&numbers at your respective positions and not about team success and record.
We get it. You were still wrong and you still have a lot to learn about the NBA and basketball overall. No amount of accusing me of not liking Harden will change the fact that you were so wrong and it wasn't even close.
He played a great offensive season. Let's just be clear about that. I think this season there were players who played fantastic on both ends of the court. 2nd team at best. Wouldn't mind they left him off to fuel his fire for next season.
