Getty James Harden, Rockets
The scoring ability of Brooklyn Nets starting shooting guard James Harden is unmatched. He has won the last three scoring titles. To put in perspective just how incredible of a feat that is, Harden already has more scoring titles than Tracy McGrady, the late Kobe Bryant, and the NBA’s all-time leading scorer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. As prolific of a scorer as Harden is, getting buckets is not even the most dangerous aspect of his game. Harden’s passing is the catalyst of the Nets’ offense. Harden leads the league in assists with 11.4 per game. He is the only player averaging double-digit assists this season. During Tuesday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers, Harden passed yet another Hall of Famer on the all-time assists list.
James Harden Passes Kevin Garnett on All Time Assists List
When Harden registered his 14th assist on Tuesday he surpassed Hall of Famer and former Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Garnett on the all-time assists list. Harden is now in the top 50 all-time and is averaging an even 12 assists per game this season. “The Beard” also registered his 50th career triple-double in the win and while all the milestones he has achieved are impressive, his focus is on continuing to help his squad get in the win column. “It’s not about stats for me,” Harden said on a Zoom call with reporters Tuesday via Nets Wire. “It’s about getting a win. I think since I’ve been here, I’ve tried to do whatever it takes for us to have a win. That’s all that matters.”
Harden, Irving, and Durant combined for 90 points in their last game against the Los Angeles Clippers. As most predicted, the offense will not be the issue with the Nets as coming into Tuesday’s matchup with the Clippers they had the highest offensive rating in the league. The defense is where the improvement needs to happen with Brooklyn and the Nets looked like a completely different defensive squad than we are used to seeing when they played the Clippers. Harden knows that if they continue to put forth that same type of effort it will be hard for any team to beat them four times in seven games.
Brooklyn Needs To Give Maximum Effort Consistently
“Offensively, we are one of the best teams in this league,” Harden told reporters after Tuesday’s win via NetsDaily. “If we man up and get stops individually and our principles, we have each other’s back consistently. Once we get that down pack defensively and talking about blowing teams out cause offensively, we will continue to figure it out but defensively, we have to figure it out. That is what it has to be for us to be playing at the end.”
The Clippers were the Nets’ biggest test of this season and they passed with flying colors. They have another test coming on Friday the Toronto Raptors as the team’s starting point guard Fred VanVleet dropped a franchise-record 54 points in his last outing. James Harden understands that to be serious contenders to win the title the Nets have to keep their foot on the gas for every opponent that they face.
“We got to look at our own self in the mirror and what we do, what we contribute to this team, and try to do it every single night,” Harden told reporters via NetsDaily. “As I said, obviously we make mistakes individually but if we have the right mindset and want to do the right things – more than not, we can get it done as a team collectively.”
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