James Harden Doesn't Try Recruiting LeBron James, Says Rockets Are Great as Is
Even on the night he received the NBA Most Valuable Player Award, Houston Rockets star James Harden had to address what's likely to be a big offseason for his team.
Many expect the Rockets to make a serious run at Paul George or LeBron James in free agency, but Harden downplayed the need for significant reinforcements this summer, per Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver:
Harden's comments aren't wide of the mark. The Rockets won more games than any other team (65) and might have knocked the Golden State Warriors out of the Western Conference Finals were it not for Chris Paul's hamstring injury.
The new MVP is right to be confident in his current squad.
At the same time, George or James could mean closing the gap even further with—or even surpassing—Golden State. It would be similar to a 73-win NBA Finals runner-up Warriors squad adding Kevin Durant.
The Warriors may have wound up winning titles in 2017 and 2018 without Durant, but signing the nine-time All-Star basically made them unstoppable.
When the time comes to make a serious pitch to George, James or any other marquee free agent, Harden likely won't hesitate to do whatever he can to help improve the Rockets roster.
