"I still can score": James Harden debunks narrative of being uncomfortable as a primary option
With Kawhi Leonard in street clothes in Game 1 between the Dallas Mavericks and LA Clippers, James Harden put Los Angeles on his back. “The Beard” had his highest-scoring game in the NBA since dropping 29 points against the Milwaukee Bucks in early April. He scattered 29 points, laced with six 3-pointers to emphasize his scoring prowess.
Clippers coach Ty Lue was confident before the game that his team could find ways to hold the fort while “The Claw” worked on a return. Lue still has Harden, Paul George, Russell Westbrook and Norman Powell who can light up the scoreboard.
On Sunday night, it was the much-maligned left-hander who rose to the occasion. When asked later in the locker room about his scoring exploits, the LA Clippers guard responded (via Tomer Azarly):
“I can score with the best of them. I still can score with the best of them. My role for this team is just to generate really good shots or making guys' jobs easier and when my number is called, I can score the basketball.”
James Harden is a three-time scoring champ who was once one of the NBA’s most terrorizing forces on the offensive end.
During his three-year run atop the league’s scoring totem pole, he averaged 33.7 PPG, topped by a staggering 36.1 output during the 2018-19 season. Those days became distant memories once he left the Houston Rockets.
Harden’s scoring started to drop when he bailed out of Houston to play alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn. From there, he jumped ship again to take his talents to the City of Brotherly Love to be teammates with Joel Embiid. On both stops, Durant and Embiid were the unquestioned leaders and the first option on offense.
James Harden’s game is now more about setting up his teammates and taking advantage of mismatches. Without Leonard, he will have to be more aggressive in looking for his shots to open the floor for Paul George and even Ivica Zubac.
James Harden’s scoring will be closely monitored late in the series
In last year’s Game 1 between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Boston Celtics, James Harden exploded for 45 points without Joel Embiid.
He led the Sixers to a stunning win on the road against the highly-touted Cs who have had Philly's number in the playoffs. Some thought that he probably turned a corner when it came to clutch postseason situations.
In Game 4, “The Beard” dropped another 40-point game to reinforce the belief that he's finally living up to playoff expectations. In Games 6 and 7, though, the traditional Harden-disappears-in-the-playoffs act returned.
From the confident star, he wouldn’t even look at the rim and pretend to score. Philly fans, who knew this reputation, couldn’t believe they were witnessing it.
Fans will not be impressed with James Harden’s Game 1 exploits for the LA Clippers versus the Dallas Mavericks. They will be waiting to see if he can follow through the rest of the series, particularly when it’s closing out time.
Harden was right when he said that he could still score. He has just not done it consistently in pressure-cooker situations in the playoffs.