Author Topic: James Harden is the biggest choker right now  (Read 8223 times)

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James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« on: April 24, 2014, 04:09:27 PM »

Offline Monkhouse

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Enough said.

Doesn't show up to play, doesn't hustle on defensive possessions, just stands there, and lazily tries to double team. He also does a really detrimental thing by rushing his shots and taking a 3pt shot with at least 10-12 extra seconds on the clock. The problem with this? If your team is struggling to get back on defense, you're down by 7, why would you take a 3 if there is no possible chance of a offensive rebound? Come on, I like Harden's game. I also didn't like his attitude when talking to a reporter.

Quote
HOUSTON — Since James Harden already has the beard, it might be time to add the big plastic nose and large glasses to complete the disguise.

Then again, he’s already doing a good job of going incognito against the Blazers.

Through the first two games of the playoffs, Harden has made just 14 of 47 shots (29.8 percent) from the field and looked very rarely and very little like the attack-the-basket, 3-point shooting scourge of the regular season.

Harden averaged 9.1 free throws per game during the regular season, but got to the line twice in Game 2.

Fran Blinebury a reporter who used to cover the Rockets for the Houston Chronciles, back when Yao Ming/Tracy McGrady was here; he moved on the big time shot as a writer/analyst for the NBA.

He asked him what happened, and James Harden got in his face and questioned if he watched basketball, then called him a weirdo. If things had escalated, it could've gotten ugly.
Quote
  A few minutes later, the questions stopped coming, but not before Harden, evidently still aggravated, circled back and spun the questioning to the aforementioned reporter, taking issue with his basketball credibility.

    "You've never seen someone shoot 29 percent in two games? You must not watch basketball."

    The longtime reporter responded that he'd watching basketball longer than Harden had been alive. And that Harden should be held to a higher standard because he is All-NBA.

    "Weirdo," Harden said, before walking out of the room once Houston's PR staff stepped in.

Quote
"I'm not worried about my offense, I'm worried about our defense—our defense as a team," he said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtaxExvpx34

At some point McFail is also getting predictable... The moment the shot clock is down, all you're going to see is a Harden iso, crossover two times, set a screen, then try to pop the 3. Its the most obvious thing.

This guy is the biggest choker.

My friend and I were arguing, I considered the Rockets a true contender, and he simply dismissed it by responding, "if Dwight Howard, and James Harden are your two best players or go-to guys. You're not going to win the championship."

Further proof of Harden choking? NBA 2012 Finals.

The Rockets vs Blazers were a highly touted matchup, because there has been bad blood between the two. The Rockets beat the Blazers on a regular basis in the regular season, so ESPN analysts assumed they would win or sweep them.

There is still 2 more games left, but at this rate? Harden isn't showing up, shooting bricks, and playing lackadaisical defense.

The Rockets are choking, and there have only been 3 teams in history that have come back from 0-2 on home court advantage and won. Everyone remembers that faithful year before, when we went on the 24-6 run to cement possibly what might have the greatest comeback. But alas, that wasn't meant to be.

And now it seems like the Rockets will be packing their bags early.
« Last Edit: April 24, 2014, 04:23:21 PM by Monkhouse »
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Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #1 on: April 24, 2014, 04:27:50 PM »

Offline D.o.s.

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Right now?

What about the 2012 NBA Finals? Dude has never been "clutch", for whatever use that is.
At least a goldfish with a Lincoln Log on its back goin' across your floor to your sock drawer has a miraculous connotation to it.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #2 on: April 24, 2014, 04:31:11 PM »

Offline Monkhouse

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Right now?

What about the 2012 NBA Finals? Dude has never been "clutch", for whatever use that is.

Right now as in the only team that was considered a contender is 0-2. There is no one else that is to seriously blame that is a superstar/franchise player besides Harden.

Harden is a clutch player, but only in the regular season where it doesn't matter.

Harden needs to step it up, if he seriously doesn't want to get scrutinized for his poor performance in the playoffs.
"I bomb atomically, Socrates' philosophies and hypotheses
Can't define how I be dropping these mockeries."

Is the glass half-full or half-empty?
It's based on your perspective, quite simply
We're the same and we're not; know what I'm saying? Listen
Son, I ain't better than you, I just think different

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #3 on: April 24, 2014, 04:34:37 PM »

Offline D.o.s.

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But that's what I mean -- he played terribly against the Heat two years ago, too. It's not like this is a blossoming development.
At least a goldfish with a Lincoln Log on its back goin' across your floor to your sock drawer has a miraculous connotation to it.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #4 on: April 24, 2014, 04:38:24 PM »

Offline Monkhouse

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But that's what I mean -- he played terribly against the Heat two years ago, too. It's not like this is a blossoming development.

This is a stat that led me to believe Harden could excel as the go to guy. Yes he had starting minutes in OKC finals, but that was different. He wasn't the main focus, and honestly if you have the best offensive scoring SF in the league, then you should at times be deferring.

Anchored the 6th best offense in basketball, led the youngest team in NBA history to 45 wins, and had a statline of 26/6/5/2 on amazing efficiency at 60% TS. So why did he seriously just fail so hard?

You'd think a team like the Blazers, who aren't ranked in the top 10 percentile for team defense would be getting scored on easily by Harden... But Harden has proved that no matter how much of a go to guy he is... He can't do anything.
"I bomb atomically, Socrates' philosophies and hypotheses
Can't define how I be dropping these mockeries."

Is the glass half-full or half-empty?
It's based on your perspective, quite simply
We're the same and we're not; know what I'm saying? Listen
Son, I ain't better than you, I just think different

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #5 on: April 24, 2014, 04:56:16 PM »

Offline Snakehead

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Quote
"I'm not worried about my offense, I'm worried about our defense—our defense as a team," he said.


That made me laugh out loud.  Guy doesn't even keep his eye on his man when he's off ball, something I learned to do in 3rd grade CYO ball.

I will say though that the Blazers are a really good team in my opinion.  Them beating Houston is not a choke in my book.  Houston should win but Aldridge is playing at an incredible level and the rest of the team is strong too.
"I really don't want people to understand me." - Jordan Crawford

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #6 on: April 24, 2014, 05:01:36 PM »

Offline Monkhouse

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Quote
"I'm not worried about my offense, I'm worried about our defense—our defense as a team," he said.


That made me laugh out loud.  Guy doesn't even keep his eye on his man when he's off ball, something I learned to do in 3rd grade CYO ball.

I will say though that the Blazers are a really good team in my opinion.  Them beating Houston is not a choke in my book.  Houston should win but Aldridge is playing at an incredible level and the rest of the team is strong too.

Yes the Blazers have really surprised some people.

The only thing is Alridge made some REALLY tough shots. Lets see if Alridge can continue his honey sweet stroke from mid range. But my original point is that the Rockets had a better team overall, and should be winning.
"I bomb atomically, Socrates' philosophies and hypotheses
Can't define how I be dropping these mockeries."

Is the glass half-full or half-empty?
It's based on your perspective, quite simply
We're the same and we're not; know what I'm saying? Listen
Son, I ain't better than you, I just think different

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #7 on: April 24, 2014, 05:36:30 PM »

Offline Who

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Been awful in the first two games. Struggled in last year's playoffs (on a mediocre team where a strong defensive opponent zeroed in on him). Stunk in the 2012 Finals but was very good in earlier rounds.

Given this, I would say that Harden still has a lot to prove as a "best player on a contender". I wouldn't go as far as to call him a choker. Not yet. There are certainly a couple of very bad performances. But I think this is still in the early stages and I would class it (for now) solely as a young player going through some growing pains. A young player figuring out the playoffs. Only 24 years old. 2nd season as go-to guy. Only 8 playoff games as go-to guy.

Give Harden more time and we'll see how it goes.

I expect him to figure things out and come good over time.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #8 on: April 24, 2014, 05:52:44 PM »

Offline D.o.s.

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But that's what I mean -- he played terribly against the Heat two years ago, too. It's not like this is a blossoming development.

This is a stat that led me to believe Harden could excel as the go to guy. Yes he had starting minutes in OKC finals, but that was different. He wasn't the main focus, and honestly if you have the best offensive scoring SF in the league, then you should at times be deferring.

Anchored the 6th best offense in basketball, led the youngest team in NBA history to 45 wins, and had a statline of 26/6/5/2 on amazing efficiency at 60% TS. So why did he seriously just fail so hard?

You'd think a team like the Blazers, who aren't ranked in the top 10 percentile for team defense would be getting scored on easily by Harden... But Harden has proved that no matter how much of a go to guy he is... He can't do anything.

I think my Blazers affinity is pretty well known on this blog, so I'll just say that it's really gratifying for them to finally be receiving some rightful attention.
At least a goldfish with a Lincoln Log on its back goin' across your floor to your sock drawer has a miraculous connotation to it.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #9 on: April 24, 2014, 06:20:15 PM »

Offline Tr1boy

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Harden is a number 3 guy in the playoffs. Btw what a chucker. He knows he will get stuffed driving in and has to shoot. But his eff is horrible.  Okc knew what they were doing not giving him the money he wanted and trading him

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #10 on: April 24, 2014, 07:05:21 PM »

Offline Snakehead

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Quote
"I'm not worried about my offense, I'm worried about our defense—our defense as a team," he said.


That made me laugh out loud.  Guy doesn't even keep his eye on his man when he's off ball, something I learned to do in 3rd grade CYO ball.

I will say though that the Blazers are a really good team in my opinion.  Them beating Houston is not a choke in my book.  Houston should win but Aldridge is playing at an incredible level and the rest of the team is strong too.

Yes the Blazers have really surprised some people.

The only thing is Alridge made some REALLY tough shots. Lets see if Alridge can continue his honey sweet stroke from mid range. But my original point is that the Rockets had a better team overall, and should be winning.

I do agree but I find the word choke to be incorrect.  Upset, sure.  Blazers are legit though.

And Aldridge has been playing at a very high level all year.  Yes, this is obviously another level, really incredible, but Aldridge is a top 10 player for sure.  More than I'd say of anyone on Houston.  The team with the best player can certainly win any NBA series.  (I would have previously had Howard in that class but he has fallen off the last two years, Harden is too one dimensional).
"I really don't want people to understand me." - Jordan Crawford

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #11 on: April 24, 2014, 07:15:08 PM »

Offline pokeKingCurtis

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Reddit's /r/nba says this has something to do with the fact that he has no in-between game, making defending him an easy task. The Blazers have apparently been sagging off his drives and not fouling. Since he can't pull up, the Blazers would have essentially shut him down.

Any truth?

I had bought in to the idea that James Harden is the ultimate offensive force thanks to advanced stats.

But it sure would be nice that the game has not, in fact, degenerated into 3's and layups (although this is fun).

It's probably also partly because Harden's release from 3 is so slow. But then even if Harden developed into a legit off the ball threat, I think the Blazers would still just sag and take their chances. There seems to be some truth to it.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #12 on: April 25, 2014, 02:27:56 AM »

Offline D.o.s.

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Reddit's /r/nba says this has something to do with the fact that he has no in-between game, making defending him an easy task. The Blazers have apparently been sagging off his drives and not fouling. Since he can't pull up, the Blazers would have essentially shut him down.

Any truth?

I had bought in to the idea that James Harden is the ultimate offensive force thanks to advanced stats.

But it sure would be nice that the game has not, in fact, degenerated into 3's and layups (although this is fun).

It's probably also partly because Harden's release from 3 is so slow. But then even if Harden developed into a legit off the ball threat, I think the Blazers would still just sag and take their chances. There seems to be some truth to it.

Houston's entire offensive philosophy is based around taking as few midrange shots as possible, so it would follow that Harden doesn't shoot many shots that aren't threes, layups, or foul shots.

It doesn't mean he has no in between game, though. Antoine Walker had a nice post game, but you'd never know if from the C's playoff runs from a decade ago.
At least a goldfish with a Lincoln Log on its back goin' across your floor to your sock drawer has a miraculous connotation to it.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #13 on: April 25, 2014, 07:54:19 AM »

Offline pokeKingCurtis

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Reddit's /r/nba says this has something to do with the fact that he has no in-between game, making defending him an easy task. The Blazers have apparently been sagging off his drives and not fouling. Since he can't pull up, the Blazers would have essentially shut him down.

Any truth?

I had bought in to the idea that James Harden is the ultimate offensive force thanks to advanced stats.

But it sure would be nice that the game has not, in fact, degenerated into 3's and layups (although this is fun).

It's probably also partly because Harden's release from 3 is so slow. But then even if Harden developed into a legit off the ball threat, I think the Blazers would still just sag and take their chances. There seems to be some truth to it.

Houston's entire offensive philosophy is based around taking as few midrange shots as possible, so it would follow that Harden doesn't shoot many shots that aren't threes, layups, or foul shots.

It doesn't mean he has no in between game, though. Antoine Walker had a nice post game, but you'd never know if from the C's playoff runs from a decade ago.

Looking at Harden's old shot charts, though, he doesn't seem to take too many mid-range shots.

My impression of him is that he's the ultimate new age scorer --- 3's and layups exclusively.

I might very well be wrong, though. Can't stand watching other teams since I easily get jealous and hateful.

But then even if Harden really had a mid-range game, would this not be a testament to there being at least some value to the mid-range game? I did know that the Rockets take a lot of 3's and layups. Their D-League team even does this. Maybe they've taken it too far.

Interesting regardless. Portland's LeMarcus Aldridge bases his game around the mid-range, old school, versus Houston's new age efficiency.

Re: James Harden is the biggest choker right now
« Reply #14 on: April 25, 2014, 07:56:07 AM »

Offline Birdman

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Paul George may be the biggest along with all the Pacers players
C/PF-Horford, Baynes, Noel, Theis, Morris,
SF/SG- Tatum, Brown, Hayward, Smart, Semi, Clark
PG- Irving, Rozier, Larkin