Harden is great, but the reason the Rockets have been winning is because of our defense. Harden would not have brought that to the table. I wanted Harden back, I'll admit that, and I would of paid him max money to come home, but I do enjoy the balance the team has right now, even if it doesn't always translate to wins. We weren't winning a championship with Harden anyways and could we expect the same level of commitment on the defensive end from our younger players, if the main guy would not put the effort in? From a developmental perspective (defensively) it seems entirely like the right move. For Sengun's development, it also seemed like the right move (although Harden / Sengun P&R would have been very good as well), especially since Alp does a lot of passing and you can't have one man pounding the ball all game long. I love Harden though, and him being good again this regular season is not a ****ing surprise. I'm glad the usual trolls were able to get their licks in though, I'm sure they felt good. They'll be here during the playoffs though to remind everyone what a bum Harden is.
It would have been but FVV is playing like Costco brand CP3 and has been perfect so far. Top 5 in assist per game with a 5 to 1 A/TO ratio, good 3PT shooting, great defense, great leadership, isn't a distraction on or off the court, signed a 2-year + 1 NG deal, is only 29 so should have a few years left of his prime.
Harden is a great to elite post defender, especially in the high post. Assuming he buys in to Udoka, we could have easily switched Harden and Smith and let Smith cover wings instead of bigs. I also would much rather Harden show both Green and Amen how to playmake as he is far superior to FVV in that aspect IMO.
I understand that Harden has always been an elite post defender, but what has made this team so good is being able to challenge 3 pointers and limiting fast break opportunities. Harden is ****ing lazy at closing out (unless he cares) and he definitely hates running back (he instead b****es at whatever teammate was closest for not getting back lol). So even if Smith/Harden would of switched defensive assignments, it still would not have made us the elite defensive team we are, we may have just been average, which would of been okay, but there is always the potential of bad habits sticking around when your best player does not play hard on the other side.
I wanted him back too, but I think he could have bought in to the team D under a new coach. He is playing team D in LA. Harden/Sengun pick and roll would be crazy
could have harden back leadin us to greatness with folks btching still. Same folks now just endless btching about green instead
I would have been happy to have Harden here instead of FVV this year. There's really not much argument with the team being better with him this year. But, I'm not sure if we'd be better 3 years from now seeing how the team is playing. The problem would be with the defensive development and off ball activity of the young players. Harden doesn't have the best lateral quickness but more importantly he just doesn't try. He won't fight over screens or make second and third efforts. He also won't do much beyond space the floor off the ball. So, the issue would be if other players start to follow his lead. Particularly, the players that feel they have more of a scoring role. From an entertainment perspective, it would have been a fun end to his career with lots of nostalgia. And we would probably have won more games this year. But, it's not like we would have been contenders or anything. He's having a far greater impact with the Clippers than he would have here.
FVV has been great, but harden seems to elevate the players around more than I can say for fred Tyrese maxey’s amazing shooting from last yr with harden has seemingly come back down to earth this yr without hardens in-ball gravity hardens demise has been greatly overblown
While I won't deny possible effort concerns, Maxey has heavily credited Harden with helping him evolve into the star/superstar that he currently is this season. Did he seem to lack effort while Harden was in Philly? There is absolutely no one on our team that can help Green learn how to pace himself and score more effectively on this team. Harden is a master of pace control and recognizing / dissecting multiple layers of D and could have been that influence for him just like he was for Maxey. Same applies for Amen and Cam.
Maxey is a go-getter, learned the maximum from Harden in just 1 or 2 years and then immediately converted that into something useful.
Death, taxes, and CF arguing about Jimmy. Y'all are pretty amazing. I hope your grandkids continue to argue about him.
It definitely would of been fun to see what Harden could of done for our young team. I'm sure the Harden/Sengun pick and roll would of been lethal. I still feel strongly about the defensive impact he would not have made, but I agree, his demise was greatly overblown. I remember when his haters were singing praises at the beginning of the season after his trade to the Clippers, I always knew he would bounce back. Hope he wins a championship this year.
