James Harden - The new X-factor for the Oklahoma City Thunder
Anyone who has seen the Oklahoma City Thunder play knows that the team has two genuine stars, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. They are not only the future of Oklahoma City (OKC); but are also a big part of the future of NBA itself.
Durant and Westbrook are phenomenal talents and have shown in this post-season that they more than ready for the big stage. However, Oklahoma City are much more than just their two stars, they are a team full of talented players who have played their part in the franchise’s recent successes.
Kendrick Perkins has been an asset in the paint since coming in. Serge Ibaka is solid, he gets his blocks in and his offense has started to pick up of late. Eric Maynor, Nick Collison and Daequan Cook are important players who regularly come off the bench to help out Durant and Westbrook.
There is one more player, in his sophomore year, who has been making quite a stir this season. James Harden usually stands out thanks to his thick beard and also for his unassuming demeanour, but in this years’ playoffs, time and time again he has stood out because of his solid basketball play.
Harden is turning out to be the most important factor behind the dashing duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. James is the platform which enables Durant and Westbrook to carry the team forward. He seems to improve with every outing and regularly helps out his superstar teammates when it matters.
He was at it again in the game-2 of the Western Conference semi-finals against the Dallas Mavericks. After Westbrook misfired in game-1, putting a huge load on Durant that even he couldn’t handle, the Thunder knew they needed someone to step in and step up.
Enter James Harden.
Harden was up for the fight in game-2. He had watched Jose Barea and Jason Terry come off the bench and devastate his team in the series opener, so he decided to return the favour. Harden was all over the Mavs as he, and not Durant, led their team to victory.
James was so good that he even outshined Kevin. Durant scored one more than Harden, but he did not have the 7 rebounds or 2 steals that Harden did. The players matched each other with 4 assists, but Harden really took hold of the game down the stretch, proving too much for the Mavericks. He didn’t turn the ball over once.
His performance coming off the bench not only offset the vaunted subs of the Mavs like Jason Terry, Jose Barea and Peja Stojakovic, it also gave OKC fringe players a belief and took off the pressure on their starters. So much so, that Kevin Durant was the only starter on the court at the end of the game and Westbrook didn’t feature at any time in the final period.
After the game, his coach lavished praise on the bearded brawler,
"James has been improving ever since we drafted him," said Thunder coach Scott Brooks. (Assistant) coach (Rex) Kalamian does a great job of really challenging him to get better every day and we have a lot of confidence in James. I personally do, our staff does.
"He made plays. He made big basketball plays. James is not just a spot-up shooter. He is a penetrator. He is a playmaker and I thought he did it all tonight."
Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are no doubt the leaders of this team, but if the Thunder are serious about going all the way to the NBA Finals, it is Harden and the rest of the support cast who will be the key to their success.
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