You have every right to be critical. He's been bad. But that doesn't mean he's a hopeless cancer. Personally I think he's not 100% and just flat worn out. Watch the first game then watch the last regular season game. It's pretty clear to me that something isn't right. I guess it's the knee jerk reaction stuff that really blows me away.
If being tired is why he's been playing bad lately, then he must be mentally tired, not just physically tired. It's not just that he is missing shots or that his Euro steps are not as sharp, but he's making bad decisions. And he seems blind to the problem. Let's see if a full offseason will bring back the efficient Harden.
I'll agree with Harden. Between the two, reading what is a good shot at the end of the game, seems better assessed by the player with the ball. McHale can sit in his chair and judge all he wants. That's his judge. But HE knows, we know and the entire Rockets team know that McHale isn't competent in the area of crunchtime. It's obvious.
Don't know if this has been posted. Harden and Rockets are not alone in this... http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/57463/hypnotized-by-heroes
Good logic. So all those times Kobe took a fadeaway 3-pointers with 3 defenders on him while his open teammates just stood there was good basketball because Kobe knows what a good shot is.
You took it to the extreme. Of course that's not the best, but I don't recall the same scenario during this series. My point is I trust James to judge a shot he can make while he's on the court and in the moment, rather than what Kevin *suddenly* sees from his seat. If he draws up a play for Harden to make a pass, then I hope Harden makes it. However, if he's telling James to take over, I'm trusting James to attempt a shot he believes he can make. He's not Kobe, but he's the best we have in that situation.
You know what I see as the biggest issue is that he takes too long. He use to make decisions so quickly. He would dribble for a few seconds and then pull up and drain a 3 or drive to the lane and get a foul or even an And One. He passed to the open guy like a pg. That's what I loved about him. But now he dribbles for 15 seconds and then takes a bad shot or makes a bad pass. It's not that his game is bad it's that he isn't playing his game. It's like TMac stole his body and is playing on the court.
Completely agree. He has that shot he can make over 1-2 guys, but he hesitates until there is a trap. MJ had a sick game, hopefully James' sick game gets him 45 points and a win.