Could James Harden lead a playoff caliber team as the lead player/scorer?

Harden is a good player, but is he good enough to be the leader/star player of a playoff caliber squad?

I personally don't think so. I think his game style is much more suited to coming off the bench/being a complimentary player.. like Manu.

Noooope. He's not THAT good. He'd at most average 20 points on 45% shooting and fail as a lead dog.

It would have to be with a very good supporting cast though like the Denver Nuggets.

I think great second option but nah not a leader. He's the kind of guy who can pick up the slack and make plays when your main guys having a bad night. Personally I'd love to see him next to Dirk in Dallas.

[QUOTE=StateOfMind12]It would have to be with a very good supporting cast though like the Denver Nuggets.[/QUOTE]

I dunno if I'm crazy in saying this but I don't even see him being the best player on the Denver Nuggets. I think he'd fall in as just another piece of the puzzle. I think Lawson would be better and he'd be right there with Iggy\Gallo. At best I think it'd be a combined effort and he wouldn't clearly separate himself from the others.

Not even 100% to do with his talent, just Denver as a team.

[QUOTE=bdreason]Harden is a good player, but is he good enough to be the leader/star player of a playoff caliber squad?[/QUOTE]

probably not, especially with the new flopping rules his numbers will never be the same. role player 4 life :rockon:

I think he could in the east, but that team would be a perennial first round exit.

[QUOTE=NuggetsFan]I dunno if I'm crazy in saying this but I don't even see him being the best player on the Denver Nuggets. I think he'd fall in as just another piece of the puzzle. I think Lawson would be better and he'd be right there with Iggy\Gallo. At best I think it'd be a combined effort and he wouldn't clearly separate himself from the others.

Not even 100% to do with his talent, just Denver as a team.[/QUOTE]
The only one I could see being better than Harden is McGee and Faried. Faried is a beast. Lawson is not better and Iggy is not better although I would rather have Iggy on my team especially as a 2nd/3rd option but as a 1st option Harden reigns superior.

Maybe the 8th seed in the East.

he's Joe Johnson with a beard.

so yeah

Say he had a supporting cast of like Lowry, Iguodala, Josh Smith, and Gorrat then sure!

:roll: :roll: no chance..
That guy is so overrated its not funny...

Joe Johnson >> harden..

Not a caliber playoff team, but I think he's capable of leading a team into the playoffs(1st Round exit) a couple of seasons. And maybe one surprising playoff run, like 1st Round upset or CF series appearance.

I think Harden's ceiling as the lead dog would be similar to Glenn Robinson in Milwaukee or Glen Rice in Miami and Charlotte. 2 or 3 playoff appearances and 1 surprising playoff run.

[QUOTE=Papaya Petee]Say he had a supporting cast of like Lowry, Iguodala, Josh Smith, and Gorrat then sure![/QUOTE]

If that was his supporting cast, he'd probably be the third best player on the team; second at best.

[QUOTE=coin24]:roll: :roll: no chance..
That guy is so overrated its not funny...

Joe Johnson >> harden..[/QUOTE]

I have to agree with this guy, harden is incredibly overrated. How is Lawson not better than him?

I hear a lot of comparisons to Joe Johnson. I certainly think JJ is a good enough player to be the lead dog on a playoff caliber team.

I feel confident that he will eventually be able to do it. He is really young and skilled. I have no doubt he could be the lead dog on a team like Indiana.

we saw what happened when Miami zoned in on him. :lol

Soooo, against the bulls in pre-season action with maybe a suspect groin Harden explodes for 2-17 playing starter minutes against a probable bulls lineup.

While it might not prove anything or show much, I feel he has stayed missing since going on a early holiday in Miami last year. I personally dont feel he can be a first option and I do not feel he is worth a max contract. I hope we ship him out for picks or something rather than potentially tieing up our money into 3 jump shooters and a developing big.

I dunno bout other OKC fans out there, but I aint feeling this guy no more. I hope Perry Jones can develop into a serviceable 6th man and I hope OKC spends the cash on a C/Low post threat.

I think he could, but the team would be swept. He would average 20ppg, on 42% shooting.

He would be one of the best second options in the league though imo.

[QUOTE=bdreason]I hear a lot of comparisons to Joe Johnson. I certainly think JJ is a good enough player to be the lead dog on a playoff caliber team.[/QUOTE]
He's not really, one could even argue Josh Smith was more important in Atlanta than JJ.

Although I do see JJ and Harden in a similair light in terms of roles on a team. Exceptional 2nd/3rd option, just doesn't quite cut it as the man.

What do you mean a lead dog on a playoff team? There's people good enough to be a lead dog on teams that get eliminated in the first round consistantly, Harden would perfectly fill that role just like JJ.


And Ty Lawson, Harden and Eric Gordon are all pretty close imo.

Championship with Harden...
...as your best player? Never.
...as your second best? Nope.
...as you third best? Sure, if he doesn't shoot 37% FG and you have two superstars...

Dude couldn't buy a shot in the Finals.

I guess the new in-vogue thing is to say this guy is overrated.

He would be slighty better than a Joe Johnson when he got traded from the Suns to Atlanta. Not the type of guy that will lead you to championships, but surrounded by a good supporting cast can be the leader of a perennial 2nd round finishers.

James Harden is not a leader. Even if he was the best player on a playoff caliber team (and this team would be a first round exit), he wouldn't be the one leading them. It would be some grizzled veteran like Tyson Chandler taking the leadership reigns.

The best player is not always the leader. Look at the Knicks, for example.

Yes i think so.

Joe Johnson, who played 40+ mpg and started every game in his PHX and initial ATL days, was better than Harden... and look how far Johnson went? first-second round exits in a weak conference.

[QUOTE=PyrrhusX]Soooo, against the bulls in pre-season action with maybe a suspect groin Harden explodes for 2-17 playing starter minutes against a probable bulls lineup.

While it might not prove anything or show much, I feel he has stayed missing since going on a early holiday in Miami last year. I personally dont feel he can be a first option and I do not feel he is worth a max contract. I hope we ship him out for picks or something rather than potentially tieing up our money into 3 jump shooters and a developing big.

I dunno bout other OKC fans out there, but I aint feeling this guy no more. I hope Perry Jones can develop into a serviceable 6th man and I hope OKC spends the cash on a C/Low post threat.[/QUOTE]

This doesn't necessarily pertain to the thread topic.

Last night was interesting to watch, for sure. I wouldn't take a whole lot from it, though.

A few things:

1. It was his third preseason game.

2. He played the majority of his minutes with Perkins and Thabo, which is not ideal personnel to have on the floor with a player like James. Not to mention Chicago was using whoever was guarding Perkins or Thabo to throw double teams and traps at Harden.

3. He still got some good looks that just weren't falling last night for whatever reason. Hopefully he's still not hungover from his piss poor Finals performance and the partying he did in Miami.

4. Despite the awful shooting numbers, he still had 7 assists and 7 rebounds and made some nice plays down the stretch dishing off to teammates after breaking down the defense and getting into the lane.

5. I did notice he settled for more jumpers than we're accustomed to seeing. On plays he'd normally try to get all the way to basket, he was stopping and settling or 12-17 foot jumpers.


The more I see of Perry Jones, the more excited I get about him falling to us that late in the 1st round. His shot wasn't falling last night, but he still had some impressive finishes in traffic at the rim.

And how about Serge? His offensive game has looked better than ever in the preseason. And those corner threes? He's averaging 16.2 ppg on 59% shooting and he's [B]4/6 from three.[/B]

Yes. you put him on the Bulls, they would carry his Bearded ass to the playoffs

[QUOTE=TheFan]as the lead scorer? yes...
as the lead player? no...[/QUOTE]


THis

Could Westbrook even do this? I think a lot of people are seriously under-rating Durant.

[QUOTE=BlueandGold]Could Westbrook even do this? I think a lot of people are seriously under-rating Durant.[/QUOTE]

Of course he could. He is a top 12 player in the league.

As far as Harden, he is only 23 and has a great talent. I see no reason why he can't lead a team to the playoffs in the future. He actually reminds me of a poor mans Ginoboli. I do want to emphasize "poor mans" because he doesn't have 1/100th of the heart of Manu Ginobili.

He didn't want to be a first option.

So....

It's time for Harden to show if he has what it takes to be the #1 option.

Yes, Harden will be the #1 guy in Houston. Lin will be #2/facilitator.

I'm leaning towards no.

About to find out. I

Yes. Look at his numbers with Durant/Westbrook on the bench. Still ridiculously good.

This thread is now the James Harden Statistics Tracker thread. :applause:

My prediction is 24 PPG to lead the Rockets for 2012-13 season.