There is no love lost between James Harden and former Houston Rockets head coach Kevin McHale, and the two men have had no problem reminding us of that over the past week.
The war of words began last week when McHale said Chris Paul is going to bring a level of leadership to the Rockets that Harden is not capable of providing. When asked by reporters about McHale’s remarks, Harden said his former coach is a “clown.” It was McHale’s turn again during an appearance on TNT Friday night, and he stuck to his original assessment.
Kevin McHale reacts to recent comments from James Harden pic.twitter.com/bTxNb1ossB
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) October 14, 2017
“Calling me names is not going to change my opinion as to what I saw when I was there,” McHale said. “It’s hard to have a lot of credibility if you don’t play good defense. It’s hard to get stops when people are looking at you saying, ‘Please stay in front of somebody.'”
McHale clarified that he thinks Harden is a “hell of a basketball player,” he just doesn’t see the same ferocious mentality in him when his teams have their backs against the wall that you see from guys like Paul.
Harden has been ruthlessly mocked for his poor defense over the years, so McHale’s thoughts aren’t exactly unique.
