James Harden is no longer the guy who could put up a 40-point, 15-assist game night in and night out. The guy who some were sure would lead the Houston Rockets to their first NBA title since the Hakeem Olajuwon days.
Harden emerged as the league’s most unstoppable offensive force in Houston. He was a perennial MVP candidate while leading the league in scoring and also ranking near the top in assists per game.
But as great as his individual numbers were, the Rockets often failed to live up to the expectations in the playoffs. That’s why The Beard realized it was time for him to move on and pursue a different challenge.
NBA News: James Harden Left Houston To Win A Championship
(Transcript via Vincent Goodwill — Yahoo Sports)
“But even as Harden has nestled into this role of being the co-star to Philly’s one-man human eclipse, he still admits to yearning for those days when 35-point, 10-assist games were the norm.
‘I would love that, but not as much — if that makes sense,’ Harden told Yahoo Sports. ‘In Houston, I was doing that every single night. It was expected. It’s a lot of times I feel like I can have that same impact on games. But you see the bigger picture. I’m just focused on one thing, man. That’s all that matters.’
When he talks, he sounds less like someone willing to take a backstep to a losing team in the twilight of his career even as the rumors about his future swirl.
‘I wanted to have the chance to win at the highest level. Once I figured we weren’t gonna be able to do that in Houston, I tried to put myself in a situation to win at the highest level,’ Harden told Yahoo Sports. ‘The ultimate goal for me is a championship.'”
Harden has yet to win that ring, but his chances are slightly better now that he’s teamed up with Joel Embiid. However, maybe he’ll need to turn back the clock and show glimpses of that unstoppable scoring machine he used to be back in the day.
