NBA Awards 2019: 3 reasons why James Harden should win the Most Valuable Player award
James Harden has had one more sensational year, but the Houston Rockets could not win it all as they exited the playoffs in the conference semifinals.
The defending MVP torched the opposition teams every time he stepped his foot on the court and it was a one-man show all season long.
He is one of the finalists (Giannis Antetokounmpo and Paul George) for the MVP award and would love to defend his MVP trophy.
In this article, let us take a look at three reasons why the 29-year-old should win the most coveted Most Valuable Player of the year award.
#3 Harden leads the Rockets to their seventh straight NBA playoffs
Last season, the Houston Rockets clinched the first seed in Western Conference with a 65-17 win-loss record and were heavily considered the favorites to win it all.
They even went 3-2 up against the Dubs but eventually lost the series in seven games. It is worth mentioning the fact that Chris Paul missed Game 6 and Game 7 due to a Hamstring injury.
While injuries are a part of this game and it is not fair to give excuses or undermine the Warriors' win, the reality is that the Rockets did not have their full roster. This season has been no different for the team as they battled injuries all throughout the season.
The Rockets entered this season with a depleted roster after losing Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute. Then, they had these injuries that troubled their players for the most part of the year.
No one really gave the Rockets a chance this year and not to forget, they got off to a horrible 9-11 start before Harden decided to take the matter into his own hands. Chris Paul only featured in 58 regular season games, Eric Gordon 68 and Clint Capela 67.
Despite all these injuries, Harden still led them to their seventh straight playoffs conference playing some lights out basketball.