Houston Rockets: Top 10 moments from James Harden’s historic season

5. The baptizing of JaVale McGee

At a time where the Rockets were looking to bounce back from a slow start, the former Sixth Man of the Year sought to cast yet another tally for best poster dunk of the year by sending another marquee rim protector directly back down to planet Earth.

In the early minutes of a mid-December matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers, Harden faced up against Lonzo Ball — and incorporated a deadly jab step — to set up his drive and rise up over a late rotating JaVale McGee for a destructive tomahawk jam.

To make it even better, Harden actually flexed his muscles prior to marching back on defense against the infamous Shaqtin’ A Fool star.

Although the following highlight from Harden would mark one of several that he would produce en route to notching the fourth 50-point triple-double of his career, one could contend that the play served as the official stepping stone that help ignite Houston’s turnaround.

In the immediate days and weeks after Harden’s dunk, the Rockets would go on a 10-game stretch in which they posted a 9-1 record to climb above .500 and catapult themselves back within the thick of the Western Conference playoff picture. The Beard’s showing against the Lakers would also mark the beginning of a historic scoring streak for No. 13.