James Harden Looking MVP-Like While Carrying Houston Rockets
There is a reason that neither injuries nor inconsistent efforts from the supporting cast have grounded the Houston Rockets.
A wildly bearded, offensively gifted, MVP-caliber reason.
James Harden has had as much, if not more, to do with his team's success as any player in the NBA this season. He leads the Rockets—and the entire league—in scoring at 26.4 points per game. He also paces Houston in distributing with 6.5 assists and in pilfering with 2.0 steals, and he ranks third on the glass with 6.3 rebounds and third in rejections with 1.1 blocks per game.
At this rate, Harden has launched himself toward a historically significant season. No player has ever averaged 26 points, six dimes, six boards, two thefts and one swat a night (h/t Bleacher Report's Kelly Scaletta).
But the statistics themselves only make up a portion of his MVP campaign. As impressive as the raw numbers look, their impact is the real fuel for Harden in this race.
The Rockets have no business sitting where they are—17-5 overall and ninth in net efficiency. Three Houston starters have missed more than half of the team's games: Patrick Beverley (hamstring), Dwight Howard (knee) and Terrence Jones (leg). Howard, an eight-time All-Star and the anchor of this defense, has missed the last 11 contests.
The Rockets are 8-3 over that stretch. That should not be possible, but it is, thanks to Harden's heroic efforts.
Take the last 48 hours, for instance.
Back spasms put Harden's status in question for Wednesday's road clash with the Golden State Warriors and their league-best defense. Not only did Harden play, he wound up logging more than 39 minutes. The Rockets ultimately faltered down the stretch, but his 34 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals kept the game as tight as it could have been.
Houston stayed in California for a visit to the Sacramento Kings the following night. If Harden's gas tank was empty by that point, no one would have blamed him.
But it wasn't. In fact, he seemed to get better the more he played. He pumped in a season-high 44 points during nearly 48 minutes of action, with 12 of those points coming in overtime. Despite trailing by as many as 12 in the second half and five in the final minute of regulation, the Rockets clawed their way to a 113-109 victory.
"I knew I had a lot left," Harden told reporters after the game. "I just wanted to attack and create opportunities."
That's what he's been doing all season long.
He has created 16.3 points per game with his assists, per NBA.com's player tracking data, which trails only LeBron James among non-point guards. His drives to the basket have generated 12.9 points per game for the Rockets, the third-highest total in the league.
If the season ended today, someone might need to fashion the Maurice Podoloff Trophy with facial hair. Former NBA player and current NBA TV analyst Rick Fox thinks Harden deserves MVP honors:
Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey agrees:
"James Harden is honestly in competition for the MVP award," wrote Scaletta. "How could he not be? … Harden has been the biggest reason they keep on winning. All he's doing is everything."
Harden's presence alone transforms the Rockets from anemic to elite. Houston has a plus-8.5 net efficiency rating with Harden on the floor, which would rank as the league's third-best. When he sits, that rating plummets to minus-8.1, a mark worse than all but three teams.
Those are MVP numbers. So too are Harden's top-10 rankings in player efficiency rating (25.4, sixth), total win shares (4.4, third) and defensive win shares (1.7, first).
MVP voters might find a handful of better stat sheets elsewhere. What they won't discover, though, is production that has made a bigger impact on the standings, as Sports On Earth's Michael Pina explained:
"The list of legitimate MVP candidates is not short this early in the season. Marc Gasol, Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins and LeBron James (remember him!?) are all scorching the Earth. But so far, Harden is more important to the Rockets than any others have been to their respective squads. Several Rockets are injured, giving him the opportunity to do more with less.
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Harden's defense has improved, but it still isn't anything to brag about. That being said, the Rockets have been the league's second-most efficient team on that side of the ball. Houston can protect itself against his occasional lapses, provided he dominates at the other end.
With Howard out of the equation, the Rockets' next highest scorer is the 37.5 percent-shooting Trevor Ariza (14.4 points). Among healthy players, the defensive-minded Beverley is the only other player averaging double-digit points (13.4).
Houston has needed some miracles from Harden, and he has somehow managed to deliver.
"His ability to get to the rim and get fouled might be the best in the NBA," wrote Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. "Harden scores from the 3-point line to the paint, puts immense pressure on opposing defenses and will be the reason for any big-time success the Rockets experience this season."
Harden is a scoring savant.
Offensively, he can torch a defender in every way imaginable. That helps explain his emergence as one of the NBA's greatest crunch-time scorers.
The Rockets are a perfect 7-0 in games decided by five points or less. That's an incredible mark by any measure, but it borders on unbelievable considering defenses know exactly where the ball is going to go.
"Somehow, some way, we find ways to win games," Harden explained, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle and Bleacher Report. "We find ways to win."
Well, usually Harden finds ways to win, and the Rockets follow his lead. That's how it typically works with a legitimate MVP candidate.
It remains to be seen whether Harden will be able to secure the game's highest individual honor. Compelling cases are being made all across the league.
Stephen Curry could garner the best-player-on-the-best-team vote. Anthony Davis is having the strongest statistical season. Marc Gasol and Kyle Lowry embody the word "valuable." The Cleveland Cavaliers found their rhythm once LeBron James grabbed control. Chris Paul is irreplaceable for the Los Angeles Clippers. And reigning MVP Kevin Durant still has a puncher's chance if he can turn the Oklahoma City Thunder around.
But Harden is absolutely in this race. Check the field right now, and he may well be leading it by a beard.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
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