James Harden is among the better scorers in the NBA. However, his exploits on the other end of the floor have been a subject of criticism and ridicule. In fact, an 11-minute video was created to show several of Harden’s defensive lowlights and is available on YouTube.
While seemingly everyone has jumped on the “Make fun of James Harden” train, one person recently came to his defense.
Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, perhaps not surprisingly, took it upon himself to say too much is being made of his star’s defensive ability, or perceived lack thereof. He also also addressed the YouTube video that has gained immense popularity.
“For whatever reason, it has taken on a life of its own,” Morey says about the criticism about Harden’s defense via USA Today. “You’ve got people doing a 10-minute YouTube clip that everyone references, and I just ask anyone, ‘Take your worst 10 minutes from your job the last year and just take those worst 10 minutes and put them in a YouTube clip.’ I’m guessing it wouldn’t come out very well for anybody. That, to me, was completely unfair. That bothered me in a big way. Without context, you can grab 10 minutes of anyone and make them look like (expletive). I think reality TV proves that.”
Obviously, there’s some truth to what Morey said. Despite popular belief, James Harden isn’t a human turnstile. Although, the referenced video doesn’t do much to dispel that theory.
That said, the best way to make sure there aren’t more videos showing the relative easy with which opponents make their way past Harden is for Harden to start locking down players on a consistent basis. The Rockets get their 2014-2015 season underway next Tuesday against Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. That seems like as good a time as any to start changing perception.
