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Houston Rockets: James Harden Is Not MVP Worthy

By Mauricio Putz

Apr 5, 2015; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) shoots the ball as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) defends during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2015; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) shoots the ball as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) defends during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
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With one game left in the NBA’s regular season, the Most Valuable Player race couldn’t be tighter. Throughout the first half of the season, it was almost idiotic not to choose James Harden as the league’s Most Valuable Player; however, Stephen Curry‘s lights-out performance as the best player in the best team in the league reinforced his case as the MVP-leading candidate.

As much as we’d love for James Harden and Stephen Curry to be the first co-MVPs in league history, there can only be one.

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Both guards have had the longevity and polarising effort needed to even be considered an MVP contender. Stephen Curry is arguably the most valuable player on a Golden State Warriors squad that will be regarded as one of the top 10 squads ever and James Harden is the one responsible for the Houston Rockets‘ 2014-15 season.

A lot of people think James Harden’s case is being driven solely by the injury narrative surrounding the Houston Rockets. And somehow it is.

That’s not supposed to be bad, at all. In fact, it should be one of, if not the most important part of James Harden’s case.

The collection of injuries suffered by the Houston Rockets’ starting lineup — most notably the ones to big man and former “cornerstone” Dwight Howard, who has missed more games than he’s played — are unprecedented and have been so vast that it would be impossible for the Houston Rockets to win enough games during the season to eventually land a playoff spot among the bloodbath that’s the Western Conference.

Not without James Harden’s two-dimensional evolution.

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2 Houston Rockets international players that never played a single minute /

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    • James Harden has become one of the most unguardable players in the league. He’s averaging a league-leading 10.1 free-throw attempts per game, and making 86 percent of them. Also, he leads the league in Win Shares with a grand total of 16, this means that out of the Houston Rockets’ 55 wins, James Harden is directly responsible for 16. It’s surprising how this number’s not higher.

    He also leads the league in 30-point games and 40-point games. On Monday, he had his 62nd 20-point game of the season.

    And even after Russell Westbrook‘s 36-point game against the Portland Trail Blazers, James Harden is second in the league in points by 0.5 points (according to nba.com/stats).

    But still, Stephen Curry is the best guy on the best team, and that’s definitely worth something. Out of the last six MVPs, four have been on the team with the best regular-season record. The only two who weren’t — LeBron James 2011-12; Kevin Durant 2013-14 — had some otherworldly seasons, to say the least.

    What’s more otherwordly than breaking your own record of three-point shots made in a season? Or carrying your team to arguably the fourth-best regular season ever, per point-differential?

    Amid the Golden State Warriors’ continuous success, the Houston Rockets, after falling in back-to-back games against the San Antonio Spurs, had fallen from second place in the West all the way to sixth. However, a 100-90 win over the Charlotte Hornets propelled them back to third, prompting a potential first-round battle against either the Los Angeles Clippers or the Memphis Grizzlies.

    Of course, Stephen Curry has led the Warriors into the greatest regular-season record in franchise history — 66-15, so far. But he’s also a part of arguably the deepest roster in the league — if you’re going big on them, they’ll bring Andrew Bogut to match your size; if you’re going small, they’ll bring Defensive Player of the Year candidate/trash-talking legend Draymond Green.

    Without Steph, the Golden State Warriors would still be among the top dogs in the Western Conference. Without Harden, the Houston Rockets would likely be a lottery team. The second-leading scorer for the Warriors is fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson with 21.3 points per game. The Rockets’ second-leading scorer? Trevor Ariza with 12.9 points per game.

    In and of itself that’s no reason to dismiss Stephen Curry’s MVP case, but it could be enough for people out there to really understand what James Harden has done for the Houston Rockets.

    So no, after logging in arguably the best season of his young NBA career, James Harden’s not MVP-worthy at all. James Harden is the MVP.

    Next: Rockets: Peaking At The Right Time

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