James Harden and his kind players are almost never traded. There are dozens of reasons for this, but the simplest is that there just aren’t that many. How many players finished third or better in five MVP votes in just six years? Who else has averaged 30 or more points for three consecutive seasons? Most of the players who could consider themselves like Harden have statues in front of the arenas. Who could you trade for Kobe Bryant or Stephen Curry who would come close to his worth?
That’s where Houston’s initial resistance to negotiating Harden came from. There just wasn’t a fair deal on the table. Now, it seems, there is not even a good one. Denver Post’s Mike Singer reported that the Rockets are interested in Nuggets striker Michael Porter Jr., but so far have failed to generate any traction in a deal. Several reports stated that the Miami Heat gave up on Harden’s negotiations, Philadelphia 76ers executive Daryl Morey said officially that he would not trade Ben Simmons for his former player in Houston, and Harden himself had to add two new teams – Boston and Portland – to your list of preferred options for adding more grease to your wheels. It is not the first time he has done this. His initial focus was on the Brooklyn Nets before adding Miami, Philadelphia and Milwaukee to his list.
Still, no one took on the role, and that’s almost justifiable if you don’t look too closely at Harden’s production. He is 31 years old and hardly known for his conditioning. His propensity for nightlife was already worrying even before he started using the club scene to try to manufacture commercial leverage. Putting him at the top of the defense takes work so far, and he’s two years away from a contract extension that will age badly. Nobody wants to negotiate with Russell Westbrook. Teams are afraid to donate their best resources just to hold a shooting star’s bag with a rising contract.
The disconnect is in Harden’s definition of a star. He’s not one. He is something above that, a member of that rarefied layer of statues players who change the fortunes of your team so immensely that there is almost nothing you can negotiate that comes close to its value. He is the greatest attack pilot for the elite team in the entire NBA.
Harden did not have to score a single point in his season debut on Saturday to remind anyone of that. He also didn’t need to win the game. He just needed to step on the ground and terrorize his defenses in exactly the same way he always did, in ways that can be exemplified by a single move. The action begins with Derrick Jones Jr. protecting Harden. Christian Wood sets a canvas for him, forcing Robert Covington to switch to Harden. But watch Jones’ eyes. Even with Wood wide open behind him, they never leave Harden.
Aren’t four eyes enough for you? Let’s try six.
This phenomenon has taken many forms over the years. Last year, defenses doubled Harden as he crossed the middle of the court deciding that letting him have the ball was a more risky proposition than playing three against four. The previous year, it was Ricky Rubio standing behind him just to take his step back by 3 points. The main point is the same. Harden distorts defenses in such a unique way that his mere presence almost guarantees the elite’s attack, regardless of who else he is playing with.
That was on display tonight. Harden’s 44 points were not the story. Nor were his 17 assists. It’s just that his team managed to score 126 points without John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and Eric Gordon. It’s what your team always does. Harden’s Rockets ended up in the top seven offensively for five consecutive years, despite having reviewed the cast several times during that period. They nearly knocked the Blazers down on the road, despite giving 37 minutes of play time to newcomer Jae’Sean Tate and another 27 minutes to David Nwaba fresh out of a torn Achilles tendon. If he can do that with Houston’s list of misfit toys, imagine what he could add to a ready candidate.
Contenders almost never have a chance to add a transformative force. No team does. They hardly exist, and in recent weeks, Harden’s status as a player has been taken for granted. Saturday was a reminder that it shouldn’t. We are not talking about a normal All-Star. He’s not even a normal superstar. He is one of the best offensive players in the history of basketball sitting on the market waiting to be won. If Saturday’s performance did not remind the 29 teams that have a chance to negotiate for him, nothing will.