James Harden takes a lot of flak from people for many things, like occasionally not being the most engaged defender in the world. He’s certainly not helped himself by having moments like being added to Shaun Livingston’s career highlight reel.
What you can never insult, though, is his ability to score the ball. He’s one of the most gifted offensive players in history, with a dizzying array of tricks up his sleeves to create space for the three, drive to the basket, or draw the foul against his defender.
This season, Harden is averaging over a point per minute of play. He has a scoring average of 37.7 PPG, while averaging 37.2 MPG. In the games leading up to today’s bully-beatdown of the lowly Atlanta Hawks, The Beard had only missed the 30 point clip once, when he scored 27 in a loss to the Denver Nuggets.
His 60 points through three quarters today was a statement. It was a reminder that he was the MVP only a couple of seasons ago, and that there may not be another player that has his ability to make buckets.
Sure, the Hawks are terrible. This 158-111 is actually the second time that they’ve allowed an opponent to score over 150 points this season (they also lost 150-101 to the Clippers), so this isn’t particularly the best defensive team.
But I’ll be damned if that would discount Harden’s performance. He was simply phenomenal. He scored 29 of his 60 points in the third quarter before finally be sat down. The entire Hawks team only had 73 points at the end of the third.
The win also helped keep the Rockets in the top four of the Western Conference, and that’s no small feat this season. In a playoff race where every win will matter, the Rockets need their superstar to have nights like this to build their confidence. Russell Westbrook seems to be content with letting Harden play as the main star, and the two old friends seem to have found something of a rhythm. Whether this will be the case during the playoffs, we don’t know yet. But it will be easier for Westbrook to defer to Harden if he keeps playing like this.
The Houston Rockets have been must-watch basketball all season. From Harden’s scoring explosiveness, to Westbrook’s nightly triple double hunt, and Clint Capela’s nightly 20 rebound threat, it’s been a hell of a ride for their fans. Today, they even added a bonus today, with Ben McLemore dropping 24 points.
