I want to get lots of votes on this. When did the tons of hate on Harden's defense start?

I said it in the other Harden thread. Lots of hypocrisy on both sides. Harden apologists accuse Harden critics of fabricating the narrative when they themselves are doing the same thing.

 

The truth is Harden only played good defense for a portion of last season

he was actual crap the two seasons before that and this season.

 

There are players who try hard, but are just not very good at defense. They can't move laterally, or they are too small for their position, or they don't understand the team's defensive philosophy. That is not Harden's problem. Instead, he is fully capable of playing solid defense, but gives zero ****s about it and rests on that end of the floor. If the coach is going to keep running him out there for the second most minutes of anyone in the association, why would he change. Bench him if he doesn't play defense, even if it loses games, and the team will be better off in the long run.

 

No, it did not.
It was a primary point of criticism from those who wanted to deny his MVP performance last season.

 

He has gotten a lot of flak during his tenure here

but hate is not hate if it is justified and his D hasn't even been mediocre at times.

Just disappointing first half of the season

 

It started way before that. I think that most of us, at least those of us who care to stay informed, were aware of his lack of defense from the beginning. To be honest, last year, when he gave an honest effort, was shocking to me.

 

Yep, he reverted to his lazy D ways around Dec/January of last season.

DD