Ti’s Four-Point Play: The NBA’s Workhorses

James Harden

James Harden’s hustle is becoming legendary. Last season, Harden led the NBA in total minutes played and came in second in minutes per game. This season, he’s managed to repeat both of those feats with 2,219 total minutes played and 37.6 minutes per game.

There have been concerns about Harden’s leadership, but if the best lead dogs lead by example then Harden is doing a great job in that regard. He’s doing it all for the Houston Rockets. Without Harden, these Rockets likely wouldn’t even sniff the postseason.

Even with his insane work ethic, the Rockets are struggling this year. Houston’s championship hopes seem to have crash-landed. If this postseason plays out at all like the 2015 NBA Playoffs, Harden will run out of gas before the Rockets can make it to the NBA Finals.

And really, who can fault him? Harden’s in a tough spot. If he doesn’t work so hard the Rockets probably can’t make the playoffs at all.

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But when he gives it his all for the entire season it’s tough to keep up that kind of heavy workload in the postseason. James Harden needs a few other talented, hard-working teammates to lend him a hand in Houston.