James Harden’s new Adidas shoe line dropped last week with the tag line, “I’m here to create.”
The bearded point guard’s numbers this season deem the slogan appropriate. He’s leading the league in assists per game by a large margin and is only three points off being the top scorer. Arguing that James Harden isn’t “here to create” would be silly.
The Houston Rockets, led by Harden’s fourth triple-double of the season, are coming off a solid win against the Sacramento Kings. Demarcus Cousins put up 32 points along with 9 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to negate Harden’s creativity with the ball.
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The most noteworthy aspect of Friday’s game against the Kings wasn’t Harden’s triple-double, but it was the Rockets’ 21-50 shooting from beyond the arc, an NBA record. According to ESPN, this won’t be the last time the Rockets fire 50 threes either. If the team can knock down 42% of those shots, there’s no reason to stop taking them.
“I don’t mind it but I’ll like to get the record for the most makes, not just the most attempts,” Houston coach Mike D’Antoni said. “If that’s what they’re giving us, that’s what we’ll take. We had good looks, and if a guy has a good look then he’s free to shoot it.”
James Harden’s 10 assists on Friday were actually fewer than what Red Nation has gotten used to. Bleacher Report’s Adam Fromal writes that the Beard’s gaudy assist numbers are some of the most surprising stats so far this season. The scary part, for the rest of the league, is that it looks very sustainable for Harden.
Russell Westbrook and James Harden are both on pace to join them while leading their respective one-man shows. But the bearded guard—note: he’s no longer the bearded 2-guard—can actually join an even more exclusive club.He’s set to match Stockton as one of only two men to average 12 dimes with an assist percentage north of 55. In fact, no qualified player has ever logged an percentage higher than Harden’s current mark of 57.6, though it’s worth noting Westbrook’s score of 59 is even better.
It’s abundantly clear that James Harden has been and will continue to be “here to create.” Maurice Bobb of Bleacher Report provides everything there is to know about Adidas’s Harden Vol. 1 shoe. The whole process has given the Beard another avenue of creativity, and the results are spectacular.
"Imma be a star" dropping tomorrow. Nov. 23 pic.twitter.com/N7whxA0mAJ
— James Harden (@JHarden13) November 22, 2016
The Rockets go into tonight’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers with confidence. They’re winners of 4 of their last 5 games, and have already beaten Damian Lillard and company once.
The Blazers aren’t a bad team, but there’s a good chance they won’t have an answer for Harden’s now-patented creativity. Keep up with Space City Scoop for game predictions and recaps!
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