How sustainable are the numbers Harden is putting up? The volume and efficiency of his isolation plays seem otherworldly. The analytics minded Rockets must be thinking there will be some regression to the mean at some point. When/if that happens, how much does our offense suffer, and can we make up for it on the defensive end?
I believe mental/physical fatigue and injury are two of many factors which can disrupt our efficient offensive and defensive performance. I'm thinking if Morey & MDA can still lower Harden's minutes to 34 per game (Steph and Klay are averaging that) and devise a 6 to 8 game rest strategy thru out the season Harden can keep his mind and legs fresher to maintain his 40% three pt shooting, quick first step, low turnovers, and defensive focus and intensity. Same with 32 year old Ariza's minutes who's been shooting good at three and defending better. Same with the rest of our 29 year old plus guys and especially the injury prone cp3 and gordon. We need at least one more guard who can play 5-10 quality NBA minutes. Everyone else has a 4-5 rotation playing meaningful minutes. Or play Black more and begin playing Williams or Qi. So Williams, LMA, Ariza, Tucker can do some guard duties.
His efficiency is just ridiculous right now especially considerring his pull up tendency and taking so many difficult shots. He just seems so comfortable and locked in, it’s absurd. I think their hasssss to be a regression to the mean, because right now he is just so high up on the efficiency ladder. Not just in regards to his own standards, but in terms of the history of the nba lol. Even with a regression, he will have one of the best seasons of all time. Just remarkable
People have wondered the same thing about Harden and Westbrook's stats last season, or Lebron's in some seasons, or Jordan's, or maybe even Kobe's in 06. Harden is looking incredible, but I think it's within his wheelhouse to keep this up given the trajectory he's been on the last few years. I wouldn't bet the farm on it, but he seems to just keep getting better every game so far...
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...-code-made-james-harden-virtually-unguardable So this isn't the first time he has hit more than 50 percent on step back 3's in a season. He's currently at 56 percent hitting 26 of 46 step back 3's.
James Harden finished off 2017 with 2490 points and 805 assists. The only other player in NBA history with that many points and assists in one calendar year was Nate Archibald in 1972 (2842 points, 933 assists).
Fun Fact.....James Harden is the only player since 1993 to average at least 29ppg three seasons in a row. Michael Jordan did it between 1986-93
Jame Harden is the only player in NBA history to average at least 25 PTS, 7 AST, and 3 3PT per game for a season! http://bkref.com/tiny/1bCqz