James Harden doesn’t play defense. He can still be taken advantage of off ball, and his immense offensive usage means he can occasionally be caught napping. Harden went for 31 points on …
James Harden’s defense has been the subject of a lot of scrutiny over the years. Easy money. Opposing players are shooting 28/88 (~32%) against him this season, and Harden forces turnovers on 13% of possessions. Assuming the Rockets finish off the Thunder (the team that wins Game 5 in a 2-2 series goes on to win the series more than 82 percent of the time), LeBron James and the Lakers -- who bounced the Blazers later on Saturday night -- are waiting.
For reference, defensive stud Harden’s two biggest defensive plays of the game came against the reigning and soon-to-be-again MVP, in the closing moments, and with the game on the line.Happy Monday.
Nope, sorry, this is simply part of a much larger trend involving the most polarizing superstar in the NBA. Harden, who gets ridiculed for his lack of defense despite being one of the game's best post defenders, helped shut down the NBA's reigning MVP on three key …
6-keys: media/spln/nba/reg/free/stories He previously served as the editor of The Thunder Wire for the USA TODAY Sports Media Group.
Even Giannis, his opponent on Sunday night, has poked fun at Harden’s defense in …
Rookie Lu Dort, who has become everyone's favorite defender in the bubble (for good reason; the guy is a laterally sliding brick), has drawn the Harden assignment this series, and he has genuinely, if relatively, made life tough on the Rockets' one-on-one superstar, but even he was no match for Harden once he got going on Saturday. Over the last two games, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rocket fans have seen just how strong Lu Dort’s defense has been on James Harden.In the fourth quarter of Game Three, a highlight circulated Twitter that showed everyone else just how Dort managed to not just stay in front of Harden, but not foul him, which is something that everybody else in the league struggles with.As Harden drove in, Dort stayed in front of him strong. After meeting on Thursday, NBA players decided to move forward with the season following the decision by the Bucks to boycott Game 5. Harden has been inefficient shooting the ball with Dort guarding him, and the Rockets have had to change their offensive scheme to free Harden of Dort.
The NBA is working to get every player at the Walt Disney World Resort registered to vote ahead of the general election. For the series, Harden is shooting a cool 75 percent (9 for 12) from the field when SGA is guarding him, per That said, Dort found himself in the Harden blender plenty on Saturday as well. Harden will need Westbrook to get up to speed soon. Cody Taylor is the Editor of the Rookie Wire based out of Orlando, Fla.
He spent five years covering the NBA for Basketball Insiders and HoopsWorld. That's what he's trying to do on the play above, jump on the high side before Harden gets going. Harden has been inefficient shooting the ball with Dort guarding him, and the Rockets have had to change their offensive scheme to free Harden of Dort. He anticipates when and where a screen is coming, and he beats it before the play develops. Harden was really good in the post last year, becoming one of the league’s top defenders down low.
In addition, he has also covered college sports at UCF, including baseball, football and basketball.
This site is neither endorsed, nor sponsored by, nor affiliated with the OKC Thunder or NBA Properties LLC. In the fourth quarter of Game Three, a highlight circulated Twitter that showed everyone else just how Dort managed to not just stay in front of Harden…