Kobe and Harden comparison at age 26

[Styles]

I wouldn't say that it's his fault Houston regressed this season, but that the criticism on him for being a low energy defender and playing for the whistle are valid. That's not rlly about who he's got around him

Spurs/Warriors run equal opportunity offenses and Harden is ball dominant, so he would be a poor fit on either team in replace of their top players

Playing for whistles, if you want to call it that, works for him. He was top 2 in scoring two years in a row. Still don't understand how that's a knock on him talent wise. Defensively, yeah.

Harden has to be ball dominant because if he isn't this team falls apart. He's pass first unless he's on fire or no one else is making shots.

 

[Styles]

I wouldn't say that it's his fault Houston regressed this season, but that the criticism on him for being a low energy defender and playing for the whistle are valid. That's not rlly about who he's got around him

Spurs/Warriors run equal opportunity offenses and Harden is ball dominant, so he would be a poor fit on either team in replace of their top players

Playing for whistles, if you want to call it that, works for him. He was top 2 in scoring two years in a row. Still don't understand how that's a knock on him talent wise. Defensively, yeah.

Harden has to be ball dominant because if he isn't this team falls apart. He's pass first unless he's on fire or no one else is making shots.

Dudes forget he took a scrub rockets team with a rookie Parsons and Lin to the playoffs. This season was definitely not on him

 

[Saiyajin]

I wouldn't say that it's his fault Houston regressed this season, but that the criticism on him for being a low energy defender and playing for the whistle are valid. That's not rlly about who he's got around him

Spurs/Warriors run equal opportunity offenses and Harden is ball dominant, so he would be a poor fit on either team in replace of their top players

Dont forget Dwade was playing for the whistle when he earned his first ring in 2006

Game 5 against the Mavs went to OT and Wade shot as many FT's as the Mavs combined

he had 97 FTA attempts in a 6 game series lol

 

[DonKnock]

Logically, Kobes shot selection has gotten him an all time great career while hardens shot selection has gotten him, a beard.

Never thought of it like that


Maybe if you got half as great of dribble penetration as Harden does in your Rec league you too can grown an Alpha ass beard

 

[Consumed]

Playing for whistles, if you want to call it that, works for him. He was top 2 in scoring two years in a row. Still don't understand how that's a knock on him talent wise. Defensively, yeah.

Harden has to be ball dominant because if he isn't this team falls apart. He's pass first unless he's on fire or no one else is making shots.

It's a knock because his game is reliant on getting to the line and he's not dominant elsewhere as a scorer. It works for him better in the RS than the PS where his poor shot selection tends to backfire, reason he's been so inconsistent in the postseason

Harden was ball dominant in OKC. He's like that because it's what he thrives most as. Isolation scoring is his thing, it's what makes him a star in this league. Not really a knock on him per say Kobe was the same, but you can't just stick him on teams where everyone shares the ball and not expect there to be a disruption in chemistry.

 

[Consumed]

Dont forget Dwade was playing for the whistle when he earned his first ring in 2006

Game 5 against the Mavs went to OT and Wade shot as many FT's as the Mavs combined

he had 97 FTA attempts in a 6 game series lol

D Wade was dominant outside of getting to the line though. I didn't say that getting to the line was a bad thing, it's a skill that just about every all time great scorer has, but when you aren't great elsewhere it becomes a problem. Wade had an elite post up game in his arsenal, shot an excellent rate from mid range that season and was unstoppable in the paint finishing over the trees with an array of floaters & acrobatic dunks/layups. He wasn't going into the paint with the expectation of being fouled not even attempting to finish the shot unlike Harden and his greater postseason sucess points to his superiority as a scorer.

 

[DonKnock]

It's a knock because his game is reliant on getting to the line and he's not dominant elsewhere as a scorer. It works for him better in the RS than the PS where his poor shot selection tends to backfire, reason he's been so inconsistent in the postseason

Harden was ball dominant in OKC. He's like that because it's what he thrives most as. Isolation scoring is his thing, it's what makes him a star in this league. Not really a knock on him per say Kobe was the same, but you can't just stick him on teams where everyone shares the ball and not expect there to be a disruption in chemistry.

You mean like he did on the Olympic team?

 

[Dominicansbelit]

Harden makes shots more efficiently?

He's averaging 44% FG since he moved to Houston.

ur right.. look at ts % ..mah fault

 

[Dominicansbelit]

Logically, Kobes shot selection has gotten him an all time great career while hardens shot selection has gotten him, a beard.

yea..his team and coach had zero to do with it... kobe had a great career all by himself

 

[GilSho]

Eh, both teams would be a lot worse if you swapped them with Harden. Much of the criticism he gets is more on him than the supporting cast

Yeah Harden instead of Kawhi on the Spurs & they don't even make the playoffs.

Harden took Ariza, Josh Smith & the corpse of Jason Terry to the WCF last season but he couldn't win on a 73 win team.

 

[Consumed]

You mean like he did on the Olympic team?

Being surrounded by the best players in the world is a different circumstance, and even then he didn't show nearly as much activity as when the ball was in his hands. You put Harden on the Spurs or Warriors and its either he becomes the ball dominant creator or you're misusing his talents as a player b/c he absolutely thrives 1v1.

Yeah Harden instead of Kawhi on the Spurs & they don't even make the playoffs.

Harden took Ariza, Josh Smith & the corpse of Jason Terry to the WCF last season but he couldn't win on a 73 win team.

Well thats hyperbole. They'd make the playoffs, but they'd be a worse team overall. Safe to say that team wouldn't have reached the WCF this season and remember that same supporting cast sparked a comeback in G6 Vs the Clippers w/ Harden on the bench.

 

[Tha_Mac]

Eh, both teams would be a lot worse if you swapped them with Harden. Much of the criticism he gets is more on him than the supporting cast

Yeah becuz it was Harden's fault that Ariza, Beverley, Brewer and Jason Terry couldn't hit open three's for most of the season and especially in the GSW series.

 

[Consumed]

Yeah becuz it was Harden's fault that Ariza, Beverley, Brewer and Jason Terry couldn't hit open three's for most of the season and especially in the GSW series.

If anything Harden gets praised by the consensus for what he achieved in spite of the players around him. That was the gist of his entire MVP campaign last year.

The criticism that he gets is from not playing defense and having a game so reliant on free throws. The turnovers are fair game as well

 

[MoneyTron]

That's because he shoots a lot of threes breh. When you take that many threes, 50% FG is not the benchmark.

Thats fine but it still counts as shot selection. He stated that Harden was better offensively than Kobe because of FG% and shot selection which is false in every sense of the word.

 

[MoneyTron]

Not only that, old ass post-Achilles/shoulder/knee injury Kobe had no problem going toe to toe with Harden in head up matchups.


Yall really think a healthy '01-'05 Kobe wouldn't put this dude in the ground? Get real.