Given the unfulfilled off-season commercial demand, Houston Rockets superstar James Harden is under the microscope of fans this season. In his last three games, Harden has averaged just 17 points per game (28.0% at 3 points), which is well below the norm for the three-time NBA champion.
This has led many to wonder if Harden is fully dedicated to the team, including Hall of Famer Calvin Murphy, in a “hot microphone” moment on the team’s post-game show after Wednesday’s loss to Indiana.
But there are some mitigating circumstances. For starters, Harden is recovering from a sprained ankle that forced him to miss last Saturday’s game. Secondly, it is quite plausible that he is simply in a cold shooting period, which is far from unprecedented. For example, in January 2020, Harden went through nine games in which he scored 24.8 points per game with 34.1% shooting and 23.1% in the 3-point range. Harden’s shooting may even be disabled, probably related to injury, and fans read more about it than they normally would based on out-of-season stories.
One argument in favor of Harden’s commitment could be his total assistance. In that tough period of January 2020, which took place over a much longer period of nine games, Harden averaged only 5.7 assists. However, in his last three games, Harden led the Rockets as a facilitator with 11.7 assists per game – including 13 team dimes in Friday’s 132-90 score (boxing score) over the Orlando Magic.
When asked after the game about various criticisms of Harden’s effort, Houston head coach Stephen Silas said he disagreed.
“James’ level of effort was excellent,” Silas said after the game. “She did everything I needed to do. I didn’t really answer that someone says he doesn’t play hard, because that’s not what I see. “
“He played on the ball, off the ball,” Silas continued. “He played defense. … That’s not what I see from him or the group. “
The time will come when the Rockets (3-4) need Harden to do more as a scorer, maybe in the next two games on Sunday and Tuesday against LeBron James, Anthony Davis and current NBA champion, Los Angeles Lakers. But on Friday, the Rockets got an explosive victory with Harden primarily as the leader and facilitator – and they are convinced he is in the right place, mentally, for the team.