NBA Playoffs: 10 best players this postseason after Round 1
NBA Playoffs: 10 best players – 4. James Harden
Kevin Durant may have been the Brooklyn Nets’ leading scorer in the first round, but James Harden was the best overall offensive player. For a star guard used to seeing his efficiency and effectiveness plummet in the postseason, Harden’s first-round series was a sea change as he was absolutely dominant.
Harden ran the offense during the vast majority of his minutes on the court, especially at the start of the second and fourth quarters as his two star teammates sit. He would absolutely cook during those minutes, spraying passes to open shooters and hitting shots efficiently but not at sheer overwhelming volume.
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The 27.8 points per game he averaged in the first round would be his lowest postseason average in five years, well below the 29.6 and 31.6 points per game from the last two seasons. Yet Harden was hyper-efficient, blowing away his previous playoff career-best in true-shooting percentage at 76.1 percent; his previous high was 63.6 percent last year.
The rest of the box score was not immune to his incredible play, as Harden also pitched in 10.6 assists per game and 7.2 rebounds. He even pitched in 2.0 steals per contest as he was quick to disrupt passing lanes.
The advanced numbers suggest that Harden was the best player in the entire league in the first round, with 1.5 win shares total on the back of .406 win shares per-48, by far the highest among starters in round one. His 17.2 BPM also blew away everyone else; Kawhi Leonard was next at 12.2.
At the time of writing Harden sustained a hamstring injury in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, and hopefully, he is able to return and continue playing at this high level. Harden finally is in the right ecosystem to thrive in the playoffs rather than wilt, and he showed in round one he is up to the challenge.