Considering the offseason swap request that remains unfulfilled, Houston Rockets star James Harden is under the microscope of fans this season. In his last three games, Harden averaged just 17 points per game (28.0% on 3 points), which is well below the norm for the three-time NBA scoring champion.
This has led many to question whether Harden is fully committed to the team, including the Hall of Famer Calvin Murphy at a “hot” moment on the team’s post-game television show after Wednesday’s loss in Indiana.
But there are some mitigating circumstances. To begin with, Harden is coming out of a sprained ankle that forced him to miss last Saturday’s game. Secondly, it is quite plausible that he is simply on a cold shot, which is far from unprecedented. For example, in January 2020, Harden went through nine games in which he scored 24.8 points per game in 34.1% shooting and 23.1% in the 3-point range. It is possible that Harden’s shot was just wrong, perhaps related to an injury, and fans are reading more about it than they normally are based on the off-season stories.
An argument in favor of Harden’s commitment could be his high number of assists. In that difficult period of January 2020, which also took place over a much longer period of nine games, Harden averaged just 5.7 assists. In his last three games, however, Harden led the Rockets as a facilitator with 11.7 assists per game – including a record 13 cents in Friday’s rout by 132-90 (box score) over visitor Orlando Magic.
When asked after the game about various criticisms of Harden’s effort, Houston head coach Stephen Silas said he did not agree.
“James’ level of effort has been great,” said Silas after the game. “He did everything I needed him to do. I don’t really have an answer for anyone saying he isn’t playing hard, because that’s not what I see. “
“He plays with the ball, out of the ball,” continued Silas. “He played defense. … This is not what I see of him or the group ”.
The time will come when the Rockets (3-4) need Harden to do more as a top scorer, perhaps in their next two games on Sunday and Tuesday against LeBron James, Anthony Davis and defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers. But on Friday, the Rockets won a resounding victory with Harden primarily as a leader and facilitator – and they are convinced that he is in the right place, mentally, for the team.