Can anybody link me to the articles of James Harden saying....

he said defense is for certified chumps, he aint no chump

 

It's only practice.

 

Pretty sure he reiterated this a few different times heading into last season, but here's one of them:
[rQUOTEr]JCF: I talked to Coach Sampson last week and he was talking about how he really wants to see you focus on becoming more of a two-way player. How are you approaching the defensive end this season?

JH: it’s definitely a huge focus of mine. Last year everything was new for me: playing that amount of minutes and having to do so much on the offensive end. My defense was slacking, I can admit that. In my previous couple years in Oklahoma City my defense was very good. So I’m trying to get back to good principles, good habits, and being more solid guarding the ball -- that's what I’m working on.

http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/qa-james-harden
[/rQUOTEr]

 

Get to the bottom of this, man!

 

Hmmm... I wonder how that turned out.

 

A quote like that makes me think his awful defense is a conditioning issue, which is fixable. Hopefully that will change eventually, and hopefully James uses all this criticism like that ESPN article as motivation

 

What makes Harden's awful defense particularly alarming is the circumstances under which it happened.

He was in his 5th season already. He had already been a starter and a primary scorer for an entire year. He knew his defense in 2012-13 was not good and promised to fix it. He knew the kind of attention and conditioning that is required to be a two-way star. He knew that the team signed Dwight Howard and aimed for home court advantage and a significant playoff run.

Yet somehow he allowed his already bad defense to become even worse.

He might actually improve the D this year. But what makes this year different that last summer when he made the same promise?

One must consider the risk that it just won't happen.

 

Michael Jordan after struggling against the Pistons in the their championship run, "I just wasn't ready, physically, to deal with their physical play. It was after that, that I started working on my body, on my conditioning, getting stronger."

The following year... The Bulls beat the Pistons... and began their run as the dynasty of the 90's...

James Harden and his staunch fans seems to be of the mentality that, if Harden can't physically handle playing both ends of the floor, then another player should be acquired to take all defensive responsibilities off of Harden if we want to win....

Something's seriously wrong with these people....

 

Scottie Pippen? It's not that all defensive responsibilities should go, but we need a better defensive player for the primary responsibilities.

 

Are you now comparing Harden's defense to Michael Jordan's by bringing up Scottie's role on the team...? Because, Scottie was there to compliment Jordan ( All NBA defensive team Jordan), not to mask his deficiencies... which is what you "primary responsibilities" and other Harden fans are suggesting....

 

complement*

 

Jordan wasn't talking about his defense in those speeches, he was talking about his offense, it was the pistons defense that was absurdly physical, plus he played in a hand check era where being able to push through your opponents was integral to penetration.

And Pippen was certainly there to take the primary perimeter defensive responsibilities, and while he was no doubt a great defender, Jordan didn't deserve any all nba defensive team spots in his latter years, no more than Kobe did for several years, or Lebron did this year, no player that is getting to rest on the weak wing player should, but that's the politicization of the award.

 

Here comes the I've fallen and will improve card. It's a commitment that's it.

 

Oh, no! One must consider that you want publicly fellate Patrick "Bench Fodder" Patterson, too.

 

He's the new DD. Agendas are clear and he tries to make his point ad nauseam.

 

Stop comparing Harden to Jordan. Because regardless of the point you're trying to make, Harden will come up short every time. Along with ever other basketball player who ever played. I'm officially coining any arguemt or comparison that uses a GOAT as a key pillar as a "Fool's Arguement" - Don't be a fool.

Harden is either going to commit to the defensive end of the court or he isn't, simple as that. Only time will tell.

 

What blows my mind about Harden's defense isn't just the lack of effort...

it's that he often completely loses his man. He doesn't even pay attention to him. He just stands and watches the ball. It's baffling.

Lazy defensive players know how to play defense without exerting too much energy while also not looking completely lost. They may give their man more space, or cheat over so they don't have to move as much, but they generally don't lose their man because that is inexcusably bad.

I just really don't understand how he looks so lost on defense. Does anybody remember watching him in college? Was he like that on defense?

 

This. CH's antic is getting old, even though I agree with him about Harden.