Nylon Calculus: Dante Exum got James Harden in Game 2

The Jazz pulled off a surprising win in Game 2, stealing homecourt advantage from the Rockets. Their defense was much improved and, in particular, the job they did on James Harden. He still put up some numbers — 32 points and 11 assists — but he was 9-of-22 from the field, 2-of-10 from the 3-point line, and just 2-of-7 in the fourth quarter.

During Game 2, Dante Exum spent 22 possessions matched up with Harden, during which the presumptive MVP scored just two points. Exum defended Harden for just four possessions in Game 1, but across this two-game sample Harden is scoring 34.4 fewer points per 100 possessions when defended by Exum. The Rockets, collectively, have scored 50.8 fewer points per 100 possessions than their season average, across these possessions. Among the 66 players who defended Harden for at least 25 possessions during the regular season, Exum’s marks for reducing the scoring of Harden and the Rockets would have ranked third and second, respectively.

Those results are especially impressive when you consider how they were accomplished. Exum didn’t commit a single defensive foul on Harden in the 26 possessions he defended him. Considering Harden drew an average of 9.5 personal fouls per 100 possessions during the regular season, fourth most in the league, defending without fouling is an accomplishment.

(Ed. Note: Exum did in fact get called for one blocking foul on Harden, but for some reason this wasn’t included in the defensive matchup data.) 

Exum also didn’t depress Harden’s offensive output by keeping him from attempting shots. Harden was 0-of-8 from the field guarded by Exum, about 8.1 percent more shot attempts per possession than his season average.

Exum used his aggressiveness and length to stick with Harden through pick-and-rolls, recovering to close off open space.

Exum clearly knew the book, sticking close in isolation but being aware enough to avoid Harden’s attempts to draw contact behind the 3-point line, one of his specialties.

Obviously, you don’t want to overblow a small sample, especially when Harden missed some shots that he normally makes, but Exum’s defense was incredibly impactful as the Jazz pulled away in the fourth quarter.

Next: The Thunder's flameout was an apt end to a disappointing season

Exum wasn’t healthy for any of the regular season matchups (he played just 14 games this season) between the Jazz and Rockets so this was the first example of him defending Harden this season. It’s worth noting, however, that he was also very effective in 29 possessions defending Russell Westbrook in the first round. If he can reduce Harden’s effectiveness moving forward, it could go a long way towards leveling the playing field in this series.