I think it's healthy to revisit this once in a while. It looks like Paul George has made another huge leap in his development. He looks like a real superstar right now, averaging 25.8 / 8.2 / 4.0 with elite defense. It's really phenomenal how much he developed since his quiet rookie season. I remember a lot of George bashing last season on these forums. So, my question to you is - taking into account offense, defense and other player qualities, do you think George is still a tier below Harden? Guys, let's try to be unbias.
wtf nobody said george was below harden theyre both burgeoning stars, just in different ways. Can you run an offense around just george though? probably not. But the dude will lock down anybody and still give you pretty good offense (not as good as harden)
I agree with your assessment. George also looks like he made some development in his offensive game (or perhaps it's just a different offensive system), anyway he's showing he can produce like the best of them, and his offense doesn't seem to be too far of Harden's. His defense though is leaps and bounds ahead of James.
Right now, I'd prefer George because of his decent offense and excellent defense. Potentially, I'd still prefer Harden. It's up to him though to live up to his full potential. I think he has it to become a better defender. He just needs to be efficient with his usage of his energy.
George definitely showed he's better than Harden so far this season , it's time Harden to step up(defensively) and shows he's a top 5 player
I would still take Harden, but if George is still playing this well at midseason that might change. Harden was CLEARLY the better player last season--it wasn't even close. You can't change that on the basis of only 4 games.
Gorge has maxed his ceiling while Harden hasn't even come close to reaching it. Also this is a subjective thread, now that Harden is somewhat struggling(if 25-4-4 on 51% fg is struggling) and Gorge is at his probale peak, the OP poster makes this comparison. How about opening this thread when Harden is in full flight? Guessing by the join date, our friend is a LOF trying to hate on Harden.
I take that back, he cant be a lof as lin joined later in 2012, but the subjective point still stands.
Harden because he's a rocket. Also his offense is still below Harden's by a bit, and Harden has this clutch aura about him that if your team is down in the 4th he can get you buckets and bring you back in the game. Yeah he's not perfect (and neither is George) but he's a superstar. I think we need more games to judge them on. There were times when Harden was hot last year and could not do much wrong, it's a long season. I also think his defensive woes are over-exaggerated. Some nights he plays bad but some nights it's pretty good (last game against Portland?) and it feels like last year in the playoffs when it mattered most he did not let us down.
I'm completely unbias on the subject, I'm just curious to here your thoughts. I'd call myself a Rockets fan. Just because I make this comparison doesn't mean I hate on Harden. I have him on my fantasy team and I picked him ahead of guys like George, Curry. I love Harden man. I just think this is an interesting topic, if everyone stays civil.
yea I went George too! and after watching Hardens terrible D against the Clippers Im taking George all day every day cause he don't take plays off and from what I seen he plays hard ALL THE TIME !!
The first 4 games George got some amazing stats but they were against poor teams. The Pacers finally faced a good team today in the Bulls and he went 6 for 19, his first poor shooting game. I can see his numbers going down as they face more mediocre/good teams. Him and Harden and neck and neck though.
The only things George does better is defense and rebounding.Right now Harden is struggling either with injuries or something else because he has not had a good 4 quarter effort. Right now Gorge is playing better of the two, but if both are at the peak of their powers Hardens scoring, playmaking and overall effect is more.
I think you're starting this thread too early. It's only 5 games in. And last night when Indy finally played a good team _ George went 6-19 for 21 points. You should wait to see if George can maintain a high level of offensive production. Heck Monta Ellis is averaging 25 points _ you gonna start a thread on him too...??? George is the better defender (obviously) but his offense isn't on Harden's level (not yet anyway).
George is by far the better all-round player and potentially higher ceiling as he seems more willing to work on his game than Harden. Harden does not consistently give maximum effort on defence and his shooting efficiency, while good, is not at elite level. If Harden can maintain his scoring average on much lower overall shot attempts, then I would consider him an elite scorer. If harden made more effort on defence, then he would be considered a genuine two-way superstar.
