Five days prior to the start of the 2014-15 NBA season, the general manager’s survey results are in. For the second season in a row, Houston Rockets‘ James Harden has been voted the NBA’s best shooting guard. For once, the general managers seem to have chosen correctly.
Or have they?
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Harden got 63 percent of the general managers’ votes, however, five different players were picked, so, it’s only natural for us to try and find out who truly deserves to be called the NBA’s best shooting guard.
HARDEN’S CAREER
As the leader of the Rockets, Harden has come a long way since he was Oklahoma City’s sixth man. It was until after he was traded, back in 2012, that he was given a chance to prove himself as a leader and become the team’s front man. After one season, he was already recording similar numbers to those of former teammates Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.
| Rk | Player | Season | Age | G | GS | MP | FG% | 3P% | 2P% | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kevin Durant | 2012-13 | 24 | 81 | 81 | 38.5 | .510 | .416 | .539 | .905 | 7.9 | 4.6 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 3.5 | 28.1 |
| 2 | James Harden | 2012-13 | 23 | 78 | 78 | 38.3 | .438 | .368 | .477 | .851 | 4.9 | 5.8 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 3.8 | 25.9 |
| 3 | Russell Westbrook | 2012-13 | 24 | 82 | 82 | 34.9 | .438 | .323 | .466 | .800 | 5.2 | 7.4 | 1.8 | 0.3 | 3.3 | 23.2 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/22/2014.
Harden led, prior to Dwight Howard‘s arrival, the Rockets into the playoffs for the first time in three seasons and started becoming one of the best offensive players in the league.
THE CONTENDERS
A list of the players voted under “best shooting guard:”
- James Harden, Houston: 63%
- Klay Thompson, Golden State: 18.5%
- Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles: 7.4%
- Stephen Curry, Golden State: 7.4%
- Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City: 3.7%
I’m not sure what one GM was thinking, but Durant’s not a shooting guard; regardless, Harden does have a great case. In fact, even if Durant’s vote came from a clueless general manager, I won’t hold it against them.
Now, according to the voters, Harden, throughout his short period as a leader (two seasons), has grown enough to go through some of the league’s elite such as Kobe Bryant, Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry, and reigning MVP Kevin Durant.
| Rk | Player | G | GS | MP | FG% | 3P% | 2P% | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kobe Bryant | 1245 | 1097 | 36.6 | .454 | .335 | .483 | .838 | 1.2 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 4.8 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 3.0 | 25.5 |
| 2 | Stephen Curry | 336 | 330 | 35.6 | .467 | .440 | .484 | .896 | 0.7 | 3.4 | 4.1 | 6.7 | 1.6 | 0.2 | 3.2 | 20.3 |
| 3 | Kevin Durant | 542 | 542 | 38.2 | .479 | .377 | .510 | .882 | 0.8 | 6.1 | 6.9 | 3.5 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 3.2 | 27.4 |
| 4 | James Harden | 371 | 158 | 31.4 | .445 | .369 | .499 | .849 | 0.7 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 2.5 | 18.0 |
| 5 | Klay Thompson | 229 | 192 | 32.4 | .435 | .410 | .453 | .827 | 0.4 | 2.7 | 3.1 | 2.2 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 16.0 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/22/2014.
(Note: Most of the survey’s about the upcoming season’s predictions. As a year-by-year survey, the results are not based on a player’s career.)
Do I agree? Mostly.
Numbers aside, I do believe it would be unfair and dumbfounded to reward a player, prior to the start of the regular season, with such a title before making a thorough evaluation/comparison between his peers.
Harden vs. Durant
This is a tough one, both players are at their peak of their powers and both players have completely different styles of play.
On one hand, Kevin Durant is one of the two best players alive and one of the purest scorers the game has ever seen. Night in and night out, even playing along Russell Westbrook, a ball-dominant guard, you can count on him recording video-game numbers for, arguably, the second-best team in the Western Conference.
On the other hand, James Harden, is one of the five best players and one of the greatest finishers in the league. His Derrick Rose-like athletic ability and speed renders defenses helpless once he goes into the lane.
Nonetheless, Durant seldom takes the shooting guard role for the Thunder, so Harden is the best shooting guard between them.
Harden vs. Kobe
Bear with me for a second–do I think Harden will have a better season than Kobe? Of course he will. Harden, 11 years younger than Kobe, has a much better supporting cast and could ride his team’s success, hopefully deep, into the playoffs. On the other hand, Kobe’s Lakers are, maybe, even worse than they were last year.
Consequently, Harden’s season will shine brighter as his team succeeds. Kobe’s season won’t.
Regardless of what Kobe Bryant has accomplished during his 18-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers, today Harden, due to age, is, and probably will be for the remainder of Kobe’s career, a more explosive and athletic player.
Harden vs. Klay
Don’t get me wrong, Klay is one of the most versatile, purest shooters in the game. Some might consider him to be an even better all-around player than fellow Splash Brother Stephen Curry, however, Klay, by no means, deals with the workload that Curry does.
Klay is not the leader of his team and, mostly, seems to ride along under Curry’s shadow. Therefore, Thompson is under way less pressure than Harden, and even Curry.
Harden, on the other hand, is the alpha-male on a team that has Dwight Howard and has proven worthy of said title, time after time.
Also, as a spot-up-jumper, Thompson is even more of a one-dimmensional player than Harden. No easy feat at all.
Harden vs. Curry
Through the course of his five-year career, Curry has emerged as one of the best shooters the game has ever seen and is on pace of surpassing every single 3-point shooting record set by some of the best shooters in NBA history.
| Rk | Player | 3P | 3PA | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ray Allen | 699 | 1748 | .400 |
| 2 | Stephen Curry | 905 | 2058 | .440 |
| 3 | Reggie Miller* | 550 | 1441 | .382 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/23/2014.
(Numbers through first five-seasons in the NBA.)
However, as you look closer into both players’ numbers, you’ll realize their differences run deeper.
James Harden’s Shot-Selection:
Stephen Curry’s Shot-Selection:
Harden attempted, during the 2013-14 season, almost as many 3-pointers as restricted-area shots. Curry, on the other hand, attempted FAR MORE 3-pointers than restricted-area shots.
Curry’s savvy shot-selection trumps Harden’s. and this is, in my opinion what separates both trigger-happy guards.
As a guard who leads the team’s offense, basketball-IQ is crucial, and Curry’s is far greater than Harden’s. Nevertheless, Curry is a point guard and, for labels’ sake, it would be irresponsible to mix him up with a shooting guard.
Pelican Debrief
A happy trigger and a lack of defensive effort, to say the least, is what finally makes it premature to start rewarding Harden with such a title.
Harden, year after year, becomes a more exciting and powerful offensive player. However, a happy-trigger and a lack of defensive effort, to say the least, is what finally makes it irresponsible and premature to start rewarding Harden with such a title.
It is only after he commits himself to defense and exploits his talents on both ends of the floor, that he’ll be worthy of being the “Best Shooting Guard” in the NBA.