Author Topic: James Harden Establishes Himself as One of the Greatest Shooters Ever (SI)  (Read 1123 times)

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Offline corbe

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James Harden Establishes Himself as One of the Greatest Shooters Ever

Rob Mahoney
 
7 hrs ago

   
At some point this season, amid hundreds of makes, James Harden established himself as one of the greatest three-point shooters in NBA history. Let that idea sink in. For all of the consideration of Harden as a scorer and his step-back as a curiosity, it’s odd that he’s rarely discussed as a pantheon shooter. Stephen Curry is so clearly the greatest shooter of all time that it became a casual inclusion in his biography. Yet at present, Harden outpaces Curry—and the entire league—in threes made for a second straight season. Reggie Miller and Ray Allen were touted as standard bearers, lauded for their specificity of skill and records long since broken. Harden, on the other hand, is understood differently—as an MVP, a superstar, and even an innovator, but almost never as a pure shooter.

Harden may not fit the archetype, but he’s a master of the same craft. It’s just that he comes to it sideways, or even backwards. A Harden three-pointer has a distinct relationship to the physical space that surrounds it; what allows him to even attempt so many threes is that his step-back actively repels defenders. Getting open doesn’t require that Harden fly around the court at a dead sprint, only that he sell a convincing feint and skip back, just out of reach. What Harden has pulled off this season is a revolution of access. A three-point shooter can only be so effective insofar as they can get off a clean shot, and Harden can now effectively get off a clean shot whenever he wants. He may not have invented the step-back, but he certainly reinvented it.

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https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/james-harden-establishes-himself-as-one-of-the-greatest-shooters-ever/ar-BBV5JHR?ocid=INSSPBD10
No government in the 12,000 years of modern mankind history has led its people into anything but the history books with a simple lesson, don't let this happen to you.

Offline corbe

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   Spurs Tonight.

No government in the 12,000 years of modern mankind history has led its people into anything but the history books with a simple lesson, don't let this happen to you.

Offline kik5150

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One of the greatest three-point shooters in NBA history? Hardly. Setting a record for most missed 3's more likely. Greatest step back travel, sure. Nothing great about volume shooting at under 36%, slightly above what is considered "break-even" of 33%.
"Trump is no conservative. He's a self-dealing charlatan and he's got a lot of fall-for anything chump types fooled."
-Jim "Chump" Robinson

Offline corbe

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   Are you a GS Worriers Fan @kik5150 ?
« Last Edit: March 22, 2019, 09:28:22 pm by corbe »
No government in the 12,000 years of modern mankind history has led its people into anything but the history books with a simple lesson, don't let this happen to you.