Did anyone envision James Harden to be as good as he is?

[Imtheman]

When he first came into the league..i thought he'd be a decent starter/backup...but not this good..of course he has his flaws..but dude can straight up ball

[RoundMoundOfReb]

Nope. I even remember people bashing the Thunder for picking him over tyreke evans after their rookie years

[TylerOO]

Not coming into the league. Once OKC let him go I expected him to be a very very good player, but still not this good. He's a ****ing beast. Top 3 player in the league, go debate Captain Crunch

[hawkfan]

Did Lin hold him back?

[Lebron23]

He was projected to be a Manu Ginobili Level Type of player by NBA Draft express, but he added Prime Maggette's go to move = Instant top 3-4 player in the NBA.

[navy]

Yes. Right around the time they chose Ibaka over him

[Imtheman]

:roll:
Did Lin hold him back?

I meant before he was a Rocket.

[masonanddixon]

His ball handling is seriously off the ****ing hook. He didn't show it in OKC. It's like he got on some steroid program simply for insane crossovers and dribbling ability.

[J Shuttlesworth]

Yeah. I used to destroy my buddy in NBA 2K by always playing as OKC and using Harden as the #1 option

[Smoke117]

Eh...yes. this is you. You are going to be known as the "greatest" "maricone" who was so pathetic he actually founded his own pathetic ego. IUgh....lauglahglamfad

[IGOTGAME]

there were some threads on his ASU games. I followed him back then and thought he'd be an all star. But I didn't quite see his game developing the way it has with all the foul drawing.

[SugarHill]

His ball handling is seriously off the ****ing hook. He didn't show it in OKC. It's like he got on some steroid program simply for insane crossovers and dribbling ability.
Yeah this. I think he has the best handles for a SG in the league at this point. Dude is nice with it.

As for the OP, hell nah. I also didn't think Curry or Westbrook would amount to shit. I did think OJ Mayo would be good tho :coleman:

[Pointguard]

In his second year, I though he was going to be Ginobli on steroids. Not necessarily runner up for the best offensive player in the league.

[hawksdogsbraves]

there were some threads on his ASU games. I followed him back then and thought he'd be an all star. But I didn't quite see his game developing the way it has with all the foul drawing.

I actually thought he'd be a bust in the NBA. He had an awful NCAA tournament and I just thought he didn't look very athletic at all.

Probably my biggest fail of a player prediction ever :confusedshrug:

[Milbuck]

How good is he?

[beastee]

After watching him choke in the finals I don't see how anyone would think he would be MVP. But he really is special at this point. Great turnaround for a career that could have crumbled after failure.

[Joyner82reload]

All the guy does is take step back 3's and shoot free throws. He's averaging 17 ppg on 3's/FT's and he only averages 27 ppg. What a joke.

[navy]

All the guy does is take step back 3's and shoot free throws. He's averaging 60% of his points from 3 or at the line.
So?

[navy]

How good is he?
MVP

[RoundMoundOfReb]

All the guy does is take step back 3's and shoot free throws. He's averaging 17 ppg on 3's/FT's and he only averages 27 ppg. What a joke.
Yup and all Shaq did was post up - rape someone and lay it in....or shoot FTs....guess he sucked.

[SugarHill]

So?
Scoring that way is bad unless you're Durant

[navy]

Scoring that way is bad unless you're Durant
Funny thing is after this season Durant and Harden will have similar careers.
1 MVP
0-1 Finals

Who would have thought. :biggums:

[Milbuck]

MVP
Steph Curry is winning MVP :confusedshrug:

[Budadiiii]

Funny thing is after this season Durant and Harden will have similar careers.
1 MVP
0-1 Finals

Who would have thought. :biggums:
I love how you stay under the radar.

In reality you're the most consistent troll on this site. Everybody gives me and some other lebron stans shit for trolling but you take it next level and you do it every single day.

I see you though.

[navy]

Steph Curry is winning MVP :confusedshrug:
Who?

[Cocaine80s]

I love how you stay under the radar.

In reality you're the most consistent troll on this site. Everybody gives me and some other lebron stans shit for trolling but you take it next level and you do it every single day.

I see you though.
Rent Free

[Cocaine80s]

And yes, I predicted this shit last season after Dwight cost him the series vs Portland

[Im Still Ballin]

Ether

[Budadiiii]

Rent Free
My observational skills are what make me who I am.

If you want to be great like me you gotta be analytical. Gotta have a high functioning brain.

[UK2K]

I was disappointed when Houston traded away Lamb, because I watched Lamb in college and knew he had the sweetest J.

Did not think Harden was a max deal type player.

I was wrong.

[Milbuck]

Who?
The starting point guard of the Golden State Warriors, who happens to be a better player and leader than Harden, on the team on top of the league. Also, a guy whose brain doesn't get chimp f*cked to oblivion at the sight of playoff basketball.

[Im Still Ballin]

Ether

[UK2K]

The starting point guard of the Golden State Warriors, who happens to be a better player and leader than Harden, on the team on top of the league. Also, a guy whose brain doesn't get chimp f*cked to oblivion at the sight of playoff basketball.

Harden on the Rockets >>> Steph on the Rockets.

Right now, Thompson, Green, Bogut, Barnes, Iggy, and Lee are better than anything Harden is working with, and he's still getting W's.

:applause:

[Budadiiii]

I was disappointed when Houston traded away Lamb, because I watched Lamb in college and knew he had the sweetest J.

Did not think Harden was a max deal type player.

I was wrong.
If he wasn't a passive pot smoking slug then maybe he could find some playing time.

Lamb did us dirty. If it weren't for Presti being a genius in the draft that trade might have been a bust for us. Turns out we got the better end of the deal.

[navy]

The starting point guard of the Golden State Warriors, who happens to be a better player and leader than Harden, on the team on top of the league. Also, a guy whose brain doesn't get chimp f*cked to oblivion at the sight of playoff basketball.
Regular season award.

Harden dragging MCFail and Josh Smith is GOAT worthy stuff.

[SugarHill]

The starting point guard of the Golden State Warriors, who happens to be a better player and leader than Harden, on the team on top of the league. Also, a guy whose brain doesn't get chimp f*cked to oblivion at the sight of playoff basketball.
http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/2013/06/opinionated.gif

[Milbuck]

Harden on the Rockets >>> Steph on the Rockets.

Right now, Thompson, Green, Bogut, Barnes, Iggy, and Lee are better than anything Harden is working with, and he's still getting W's.

:applause:
Curry's STACKED Warriors just lost to the bottom feeding Pacers without him :oldlol:

The Warriors being this juggernaut roster and the Rockets being Harden and 12+ scrubs is the biggest ****ing myth of the season, and we need to stop with that garbage.

Kobe took Smush Parker, Kwame Brown, Chris Mihm, Laron Profit, Luke Walton, Brian Cook, etc with Odom as his #2...to 45 wins. That team wins literally no more than 15 games without him. His impact was massive. And yet he gets no MVP.

Why the **** are we boosting Harden's MVP case because of our perceived problems with his supporting cast, when realistically...Ariza, D-Mo, Bev, Smith, Brewer, Jet, etc. All of his teammates can play...they defend, they shoot, they play together..they're no scrubs, they just need a ball-dominant creator like Harden to put it all together.

Is Harden the one carrying them to an elite defense? Seriously?

Regular season award.

Harden dragging MCFail and Josh Smith is GOAT worthy stuff.
No it's not. Nothing he's doing is GOAT worthy, and his roster is nowhere CLOSE to as bad as you guys are making it out to be. Just because it's built totally around him doesn't make it garbage. It's like saying Dwight's finals-caliber Magic teams were garbage just because they would collapse without him....no shit, because they were built entirely around him, he was their identity. But they had the talent. Just like Harden has now. Not having a top-heavy star studded team doesn't mean you're carrying shit.
http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/2013/06/opinionated.gif
Not really. Steph is a better ball handler, no matter how much you guys salivate at Harden's. He's a better playmaker. He's a better defender. He's the GOAT shooter. He's completely reliable because on a skill-level he's better than Harden, his game translates under pressure unlike Harden's, which has clearly failed in the playoffs for years now.. Steph could just as easily play 39-40 mpg and put up cartoon numbers and blow all of the other MVP candidates away, but he doesn't because his impact is so massive that his team literally doesn't need him to play that much.

[navy]

You say all that but you legit predicted this team to miss the post season.

Harden is the damn MVP. Haven't seen such regular season dominance since a Prime Kevin Durant.

[Cocaine80s]

Curry's STACKED Warriors just lost to the bottom feeding Pacers without him :oldlol:

The Warriors being this juggernaut roster and the Rockets being Harden and 12+ scrubs is the biggest ****ing myth of the season, and we need to stop with that garbage.

Kobe took Smush Parker, Kwame Brown, Chris Mihm, Laron Profit, Luke Walton, Brian Cook, etc with Odom as his #2...to 45 wins. That team wins literally no more than 15 games without him. His impact was massive. And yet he gets no MVP.

Why the **** are we boosting Harden's MVP case because of our perceived problems with his supporting cast, when realistically...Ariza, D-Mo, Bev, Smith, Brewer, Jet, etc. All of his teammates can play...they defend, they shoot, they play together..they're no scrubs, they just need a ball-dominant creator like Harden to put it all together.

Is Harden the one carrying them to an elite defense? Seriously?

No it's not. Nothing he's doing is GOAT worthy, and his roster is nowhere CLOSE to as bad as you guys are making it out to be. Just because it's built totally around him doesn't make it garbage. It's like saying Dwight's finals-caliber Magic teams were garbage just because they would collapse without him....no shit, because they were built entirely around him, he was their identity. But they had the talent. Just like Harden has now. Not having a top-heavy star studded team doesn't mean you're carrying shit.
https://buckeyeinteractive.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/flying-lawnmower.gif

[bdreason]

I thought he would be a bust coming out of Arizona St. His efficiency numbers on the Thunder were already pointing towards him being a very good player. I don't think anyone was thinking "MVP" good though.

[Im Still Ballin]

Somebody order an Ether with a side of Rent Free?

[Milbuck]

You say all that but you legit predicted this team to miss the post season.

Harden is the damn MVP. Haven't seen such regular season dominance since a Prime Kevin Durant.
I didn't predict his team to be this surprisingly talented.

Seriously, they can rain 3s like no other, and they defend like crazy. They bust their ass and compete every minute.

Please tell me. Is Harden the reason for them being a top 7 defense? I really want to know.

They're a top 7 defense and a middle of the pack offensive team in terms of ORTG and DRTG. Is that Harden?

[navy]

Oh please. This is basically the same team as last year.

And you still said they would miss the post season. How do they go from legit no post season aspirations to the 3rd seed in a stacked western conference?

Goddamn MVP.

[Timmy D for MVP]

I thought he was a damn good player, and likely to be a top scorer and multiple All-Star if given his own team.

But I did not think he'd be an MVP level player.

[Milbuck]

Oh please. This is basically the same team as last year.

And you still said they would miss the post season. How do they go from legit no post season aspirations to the 3rd seed in a stacked western conference?

Goddamn MVP.
Answer my question.

Is Harden the reason for them having an elite defense, or no?

Quit dodging.

[navy]

Answer my question.

Is Harden the reason for them having an elite defense, or no?

Quit dodging.

They play solid team defense, am I suppose to say that a shooting guard is carrying his team defensively? No. That's silly.

Look at the damn defense Curry is working with. TWO defensive player of the year candidates on the front line.

[Imtheman]

Milbuck calm down dude...

I think the MVP could go either way..who knows? Harden is putting on a show lately..it could go either way

[Cocaine80s]

Harden has a solid case for DPOY imo

[navy]

Harden has a solid case for DPOY imo
Curry has both of the leaders on his team.

Not even joking.

[SugarHill]

Curry has both of the leaders on his team.

Not even joking.
Milbuck is being biased as shit lol

[Milbuck]

They play solid team defense, am I suppose to say that a shooting guard is carrying his team defensively? No. That's silly.

Look at the damn defense Curry is working with. TWO defensive player of the year candidates on the front line.
Ok sweet, so we've established that Harden's team contributes significantly to his team's success. Guess we can now put that bullshit "he's carrying scrubs" narrative to rest. He's getting help, just not in the obvious PPGZZ way you all seem to think it HAS to be in.

So let's see where we're at:

1) Curry > Harden as a player
2) Warriors >>> Rockets as a team
3) Curry has a lot of help, but Harden has help too

Curry is the MVP.
Milbuck is being biased as shit lol
In what way? I never once said the Warriors weren't talented :oldlol:

[navy]

Ok sweet, so we've established that Harden's team contributes significantly to his team's success. Guess we can now put that bullshit "he's carrying scrubs" narrative to rest. He's getting help, just not in the obvious PPGZZ way you all seem to think it HAS to be in.

So let's see where we're at:

1) Curry > Harden as a player
2) Warriors >>> Rockets as a team
3) Curry has a lot of help, but Harden has help too

Curry is the MVP.
Dude is getting help like any other team gets help. This is an average nba roster no matter how you slice it. Is it D league worthy? No. Is it anything to talk about? no. Pretty standard stuff here. Dare I say mediocre.

Are we gonna look back and say...

Damn that James Harden had Josh Smith, Trevor Ariza, and Cory Brewer and still couldnt get it done?

No.

[Prime_Shaq]

And yes, I predicted this shit last season after Dwight cost him the series vs Portland
No way u can blame Dwight for that Portland series. Anyone but Dwight. :no:

[navy]

No way u can blame Dwight for that Portland series. Anyone but Dwight. :no:
No Dwight Howard and still getting it done. James MVP Harden.

[Milbuck]

Dude is getting help like any other team gets help. This is an average nba roster no matter how you slice it. Is it D league worthy? No. Is it anything to talk about? no.

Are we gonna look back and say...

Damn that James Harden had Josh Smith, Trevor Ariza, and Cory Brewer and still couldnt get it done?

No.
The bolded doesn't even mean anything. He's getting help, period. He is not the reason for the Rockets being a top 7 defense. He's just not. And no matter how much you guys wanna pretend it doesn't matter, it does.

I'm not getting into the "couldn't it done" in the playoffs shit right now, because Dwight isn't back. If he loses with a healthy Dwight, Ariza, Bev, D-Mo, Brewer, Smith, Jet, etc..then yeah, he deserves blame. That is talented no matter how you want to look at it.

[navy]

The bolded doesn't even mean anything.

I'm not getting into the "couldn't it done" in the playoffs shit right now, because Dwight isn't back. If he loses with a healthy Dwight, Ariza, Bev, D-Mo, Brewer, Smith, Jet, etc..then yeah, he deserves blame. That is talented no matter how you want to look at it.

What does anything on here mean.

If he cant get it done he cant get it done. Doesnt dismiss this MVP regular season performance.

[Milbuck]

What does anything on here mean.
Nothing. We're all wasting our time. I need to be studying for an exam tomorrow at 7 in the ****ing morning. Jesus christ. Harden living rent free in my head and he doesn't even know it. Warping my priorities and shit. God damn. Curry is the MVP. Peace

[Timmy D for MVP]

The bolded doesn't even mean anything. He's getting help, period. He is not the reason for the Rockets being a top 7 defense. He's just not. And no matter how much you guys wanna pretend it doesn't matter, it does.

I'm not getting into the "couldn't it done" in the playoffs shit right now, because Dwight isn't back. If he loses with a healthy Dwight, Ariza, Bev, D-Mo, Brewer, Smith, Jet, etc..then yeah, he deserves blame. That is talented no matter how you want to look at it.

I don't understand.

Curry is in no way shape or form the reason the Warriors are as good as they are defensively either.

[navy]

I don't understand.

Curry is in no way shape or form the reason the Warriors are as good as they are defensively either.
Curry has the two leaders on his team. Has that ever happened? Jordan and Pippen ever went 1-2 in voting?

I swear I saw a Golden State Warriors fan on here tell me how much Iggy was actually the one who changed the defense.

Three on one team?

:biggums:

[SugarHill]

The bolded doesn't even mean anything. He's getting help, period. He is not the reason for the Rockets being a top 7 defense. He's just not. And no matter how much you guys wanna pretend it doesn't matter, it does.

I'm not getting into the "couldn't it done" in the playoffs shit right now, because Dwight isn't back. If he loses with a healthy Dwight, Ariza, Bev, D-Mo, Brewer, Smith, Jet, etc..then yeah, he deserves blame. That is talented no matter how you want to look at it.

Has a player ever won MVP off the work of a defensive minded squad simply because he was the primary and secondary offensive option? Surely it has happened a couple of times in history

[UK2K]

Curry's STACKED Warriors just lost to the bottom feeding Pacers without him :oldlol:

The Warriors being this juggernaut roster and the Rockets being Harden and 12+ scrubs is the biggest ****ing myth of the season, and we need to stop with that garbage.

Kobe took Smush Parker, Kwame Brown, Chris Mihm, Laron Profit, Luke Walton, Brian Cook, etc with Odom as his #2...to 45 wins. That team wins literally no more than 15 games without him. His impact was massive. And yet he gets no MVP.

Why the **** are we boosting Harden's MVP case because of our perceived problems with his supporting cast, when realistically...Ariza, D-Mo, Bev, Smith, Brewer, Jet, etc. All of his teammates can play...they defend, they shoot, they play together..they're no scrubs, they just need a ball-dominant creator like Harden to put it all together.

Is Harden the one carrying them to an elite defense? Seriously?

No it's not. Nothing he's doing is GOAT worthy, and his roster is nowhere CLOSE to as bad as you guys are making it out to be. Just because it's built totally around him doesn't make it garbage. It's like saying Dwight's finals-caliber Magic teams were garbage just because they would collapse without him....no shit, because they were built entirely around him, he was their identity. But they had the talent. Just like Harden has now. Not having a top-heavy star studded team doesn't mean you're carrying shit.
Not really. Steph is a better ball handler, no matter how much you guys salivate at Harden's. He's a better playmaker. He's a better defender. He's the GOAT shooter. He's completely reliable because on a skill-level he's better than Harden, his game translates under pressure unlike Harden's, which has clearly failed in the playoffs for years now.. Steph could just as easily play 39-40 mpg and put up cartoon numbers and blow all of the other MVP candidates away, but he doesn't because his impact is so massive that his team literally doesn't need him to play that much.

Last I looked, Harden was #2 in the league in steals. Ariza was #3.

And the Rockets will end up with far more than 45 wins.

Harden is backpacking this team. With at least three starters missing 20+ games... that would be, every starter but Harden and Ariza have missed 20+ games.

But yeah, warriors = rockets minus Harden and Steph, or something like that.

His roster is garbage. After Dwight, who has missed half the season, who is the second best player? DMo? Ariza? Beverley who has missed half the season? Jones who has missed half the season?

Like I said, Thompson, Lee, Iggy, Greene, Barnes, Bogut are better than any #2 Houston can throw out there, and its been like that for more than two months. So to pretend their rosters are even comparable is just being ignorant.

[Sportal]

When he first came into the league..i thought he'd be a decent starter/backup...but not this good..of course he has his flaws..but dude can straight up ball

I actually thought he'd become the premier SG in the league, I thought this when I was watching him come off the bench for OKC. I thought they had absolutely ridiculous luck to get such a player and that they wouldn't get rid of him. Alternatively, they chose Ibaka. Now he's looking like an MVP, which, well... I didn't see, I won't make out I could see this coming. But I guess if I believed that he'd be the best SG in the league, maybe that comes with it.

[bdreason]

Has a player ever won MVP off the work of a defensive minded squad simply because he was the primary and secondary offensive option? Surely it has happened a couple of times in history


Allen Iverson chucked his way to an MVP. Similar situation in that the 76ers were a great defensive team, but relied heavily on AI to score and create. The difference is the 76ers played in a weak Eastern Conference, and were able to easily finish 1st overall.

Harden's biggest obstacle is team record. If he finishes top 4 out West, I think he wins MVP. If Rockets slip to 5th or worse, and the Warriors hold on to 1st, I think Curry wins it.

I know it seems arbitrary to give the MVP out based on team record, but as stacked as the Western Conference is this year, I feel like the voters are going to give a lot of credit to winning the conference.

[IGOTGAME]

Has a player ever won MVP off the work of a defensive minded squad simply because he was the primary and secondary offensive option? Surely it has happened a couple of times in history

Derrick Rose

[SugarHill]

Tell them what they won

[navy]

Allen Iverson chucked his way to an MVP. Similar situation in that the 76ers were a great defensive team, but relied heavily on AI to score and create. The difference is the 76ers played in a weak Eastern Conference, and were able to easily finish 1st overall.

Harden's biggest obstacle is team record. If he finishes top 4 out West, I think he wins MVP. If Rockets slip to 5th or worse, and the Warriors hold on to 1st, I think Curry wins it.

I know it seems arbitrary to give the MVP out based on team record, but as stacked as the Western Conference is this year, I feel like the voters are going to give a lot of credit to winning the conference.
Hahahah, I dont think it matters actually where Harden ends up. The nba has been slowly pushing Curry as the face of the league. Too well liked, team too good, has excellent stats. He will win the MVP. Unless another candidate goes insane during this last stretch that you cannot deny him.

[UK2K]

Hahahah, I dont think it matters actually where Harden ends up. The nba has been slowly pushing Curry as the face of the league. Too well liked, team too good, has excellent stats. He will win the MVP. Unless another candidate goes insane during this last stretch that you cannot deny him.

This.

I dont see any way Harden wins unless the Rockets somehow manage the #2 seed.

Curry has been pushed as the MVP all season. He probably deserves it anyway, but it the script was written a while ago.

[navy]

One thing I will say about Curry is that his shoes look terrible. How you gonna give the MVP to be that garbage. :facepalm

[TheMilkyBarKid]

Has a player ever won MVP off the work of a defensive minded squad simply because he was the primary and secondary offensive option? Surely it has happened a couple of times in history
In recent memory rose.

I thought Milbuck's hate towards harden was a gimmick, but dude seems legitimately pissed off about him in the mvp discussion.

[Smoke117]

Yes someone did, James Harden? In fact, he probably envisioned himself even better. OP Fail, murder yourself, murder us all, murder the world etc etc e t adrt ard fa a fdasf fdwafdssdhgfrgsdcy5

[Prime_Shaq]

I actually thought the Thunder were gonna develop like the Spurs. Durant and Westbrook being Duncan and Parker while Harden would be like Ginobili off the bench. I'm happy to be wrong though :applause:

Regardless whether Harden or Curry wins MVP, I would be happy.

[Graviton]

Yes someone did, James Harden? In fact, he probably envisioned himself even better. OP Fail, murder yourself, murder us all, murder the world etc etc e t adrt ard fa a fdasf fdwafdssdhgfrgsdcy5
Smoke are you drunk again, your last couple of posts have been something else. :lol

[Smoke117]

Smoke are you drunk again, your last couple of posts have been something else. :lol

WAS drunk, woke up, posted here...realized it was a tiresome thread and gave up half way through.