James Harden will do something crazy in the final week of the season
There are five games left in the NBA season for the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets. That means five more games for Russell Westbrook and James Harden to make their MVP cases.
Over the last week, Westbrook has made an emphatic statement. A 14-0 run to end the game and defeat the Dallas Mavericks, the most points ever in a triple-double against the Orlando Magic, and tying Oscar Robertson with 41 triple-doubles in a season. One week doesn’t decide a season long race, but making a last impression certainly helps your standing. Right now, Westbrook has the best last impression.
That’s why James Harden should be the most feared man in the league over the final five games. We all know that Harden wants this award. He thought he should have won it two years ago over Steph Curry. He’s already picked himself to win it this year. He’ll preach team success, but there’s no denying his desire to receive the trophy that anoints him as the best player during the regular season.
Westbrook will break the single season triple-double mark. He’ll also average a triple-double on the year. Those two accomplishments will be celebrated in the final week when they eventually happen. Harden will have to fight for headlines. That might be tough if Mike D’Antoni sticks to his plan of resting guys. The Rockets are entrenched as the third seed in the West. These last five games are meaningless for them as a team. But they aren’t meaningless for Harden.
James Harden is going to do something crazy in the last five games. With games against the Sacramento Kings and Detroit Pistons on the schedule, he’ll have two great chances to go berserk. I’m not sure what he’s going to do just yet, but I haven’t ruled out the possibility of a 60-point, 20-assist game. I could see him hitting daggers against the Los Angeles Clippers to remind them that they are the OG 3-1 lead blowers. I wouldn’t be shocked if his teammates let him get every rebound in one game, I’m talking 50 rebounds in a game, just so his and Westbrook’s rebounding totals look closer. Steph Curry holds the NBA record with 13 3-pointers in a game. Don’t be surprised if Harden takes nothing but 3s in one game as he looks to obliterate that record.
In the 1977-1978 season, David Thompson (26.6 points) and George Gervin (26.8 points) were separated by .2 points in the NBA scoring race. In the final game of the season, Thompson’s teammates stood around and watched as Thompson poured in 73 points. Gervin, playing hours later, knew he needed 58 points to win the scoring title. He scored 53 in the first half, quickly surpassed 58 in the second half, and then took a seat. Both of their respective teams lost that night, but it didn’t matter. Fans witnessed two of the greatest scoring games ever all thanks to the desire to win an individual award.
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Harden has five games to pull off his 73-point masterpiece. And he better hope that he doesn’t leave Westbrook enough time to record 53-points in a half.