There are two kinds of media personalities. The ones that do in-depth analysis like this one usually have pretty favorable opinion on Harden and the Rockets (and conversely very low on Westbrook), because analytics and efficiency wise we look great. And then there's SAS, Max Kellerman, Michelle Beadles of the world, who make living off of being hot-headed, loud mouths on TV mostly dislike Harden and the Rockets because apparently there's not enough flashy dunks in our game. It's really unfortunate that these types of people have so much clout in today's sports media world, because it really dumbs down the whole discussion, and lead people to genuinely believe that a player like Westbrook is better than Harden to this very day.
From article, The 28-year-old has hit 21 of his 38 step-back 3s so far this season and an equally amazing 13 of 29 pull-ups. Mercy
That step back is crazy good. He doesn’t need much space. Plus with weak defenders, he truly eats them up. Harden has always struggled against the physical defenders. When they body him up giving him no 2-3 foot gap, his shot percentage drops. He will still get his points, by driving and getting those dudes in foul trouble and then ends up going 19-19 from the line. He’s a monster....best player in the world
Great article. I think O'Connor is the best bball writer around, even better than Lowe. He doesn't try to be funny (like a lot of the other Ringer writers/ESPN people) and doesn't get too bogged down in stats (like that Tjarks goon). Dude just gets it.
I mentioned it earlier in the season but I’ll say it again. The step back king is back! This time tho, he has range... It’s just deadly
Kevin O'Connor is great. He is one of few writers that actually watches and analyzes the games. In fact, he is one of few writers that have openly called out Westbrook's statpadding, when not a single ESPN writer has made even a peep on it yet.
Zach Lowe has called Westbrook out multiple times last year and this year, although not as hard as Kevin obviously.
