Houston Rockets: 3 reasons why James Harden is the NBA MVP

2. His improvement on defense

Despite being regarded as one of the top offensive threats in basketball for over the last several seasons, Harden has started to show signs of becoming a solid defende.

The player who was once publicly criticized for his lack of focus on defense has worked mightily to change the narrative surrounding his effort and play on the less glamorous side of the floor.

Harden — who ranked 26th among point guards with a Defensive Plus-Minus of plus-0.2 last year — has risen up the board through his first 51 games on the year, currently 18th among point guards with a plus-0.3 defensive plus-minus this season.

To put that into deeper context, Harden is currently boasting a better defensive plus-minus rating than Russell Westbrook, Avery Bradley, Klay Thompson and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist — four players who are widely regarded as the game’s best defenders at their respective positions.

"“James gets 35, and it’s like ‘Oh really, that’s all he can do?'” Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni said per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon last month following a key defensive stop from Harden in the waning seconds of regulation in Houston’s 121-119 victory against the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 25. “His defense is a lot better than people give him credit for. You have to pick something, I guess, but he came up huge.”"

https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets/status/1091893151998963712

Although Harden might never be viewed as a candidate to win Defensive Player of the Year, one could easily argue that the 6’5″, 220-pound product has made significant strides as of late,.

The league’s reigning MVP has proven that he can play solid defense and help generate big time stops with the game on the line.

Harden — who ranks third in the league with a career-high 2.2 steals per game — is first in the NBA with 3.9 deflections per game and recently stuffed the stat sheet in a two-way performance that will more than likely help him in his quest for to capture the Maurice Podoloff Trophy yet once again.

In the second game of the Rockets’ most recent back-to-back set, Harden nearly put together the highest scoring five-by-five game in league history, tallying a game-high 43 points, 12 rebounds, six steals and four blocks on the road in Clutch City’s 125-98 win against the Utah Jazz on Feb. 2.

"“If I was any taller, I could have got another block,” Harden jokingly said to reporters following his evening in Salt Lake City. “Honestly, I was just trying to be active and create some opportunities on defense.” “Felt pretty good.”"

Something that could continue to come in handy for Harden down the road, as the recent play of Houston’s Most Valuable Player might be what helps them to jump back into the championship conversation within the coming weeks.