Prior to James Harden's time with the Rockets, he was just a guy trying to get paid. He felt as though he was the man, living in the sixth man's shoes. What could've been over there in OKC with arguably three of the top five players in the game? I guess $55.5M wasn't enough. Good choice, Harden. Spoiler Although he had his moments with OKC, he was really remembered for what he didn't do. Spoiler After being sent over to Houston, he was now under the microscope. Spoiler He did quite well his first few games. It was to the point where we were asking, "is this really what he is capable of?" He was scoring 37, 45,... whatever it took! Spoiler That homecoming didn't last THAT long. I remember it like it was yesterday. Houston's own fans would hate it when the fourth quarter would come by, because they knew Harden was going to go "iso." Spoiler It was pretty bad at one point. Mchale was under a lot of fire. I remember there were threads suggesting we were a better team without Harden because we had ball movement with Lin playing the point (for the record, I understand this view was not the majority view of rational thinkers of the board). Spoiler Harden was so bad at defense at one point, someone decided to make a full youtube video showing his defensive deficiencies. Spoiler Spoiler After getting rid of some key pieces to the Rockets, Harden wasn't phased. He knew that as long as he was on the team, we would still be a threat. I'm not sure he said it the right way, but he was right. Spoiler I have seen a lot of people saying that if they were to start a team today, Anthony Davis, Lebron James, or Durant would be their guy. James Harden had other opinions during this year's Olympics. James Harden believed he was the best player in the world. Spoiler Now, it's 2015. James Harden is making a legitimate case for MVP and best player in the world. He has put on his super hero mask and decided to go into his full James mode. Spoiler Although there are a lot of online "rankings" that have Curry first. The people who count have James Harden winning two Western Conference Player of the Months. That's in the West. You know, the same conference that Curry plays in? Yeah. I would say Harden is actually leading in the MVP discussion. Spoiler With so much hate that people love to give, I think it is important to appreciate greatness. I mean, if you live life so bitter and angry, you really will miss out on a lot of happiness and enjoyment. It seems like a simple concept. But, that's another discussion. We have something amazing here in Houston. We have someone who has evolved into an MVP candidate. He wasn't drafted to become the league's future MVP. He actually had a lot of critics. This season Harden is having may be a one-hit wonder. It may be the season he "gets it." But, in the meantime, I think it would be a good idea to appreciate the good times while we can.
Feel free to merge into the "James Harden is the BEST player in the NBA": http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=262512 thread if I am being redundant.
Yea... I remember when people were crying about Harden's ISO.... Different day, same ISO, but people praise him now. As they should.
It's to the point where I am surprised when his clutch iso situations do not either go in or turn into something positive. I have also seen him with at least three game-saving defensive plays in the last minute of the game.
Too much LULZ in this thread. I feel disoriented now!... Spoiler Welcome onboard xaos! ....... ....... .......