Coming off a third straight NBA scoring title and recently named an MVP finalist for a fourth straight year, Houston Rockets star James Harden knows his name is close to being up there with all-time basketball greats.
He’s only the fourth player (joining Kevin Durant, Michael Jordan, and George Gervin) since the NBA/ABA merger in 1976 to win three straight scoring championships. He’s just the third player in league history to average more than 34 points per game in multiple seasons, joining a pair of legendary Hall of Famers in Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain.
Now 30 years old, the eight-time NBA All-Star is also just the third player in league history to lead the league in total points and steals in the same season, joining Jordan and Allen Iverson.
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Harden is still, however, searching for his first team championship. So when asked before Monday’s practice about his latest individual honors, he was careful to put them within the bigger picture. His comments:
It’s a great accomplishment. I can never take things like this for granted. I play basketball and work my butt off for individual and team accomplishments. At the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, I want to be one of the best basketball players to ever touch a basketball.
We’re definitely heading on the right steps, but I also know I have a long way to go, and a lot of work to put in. I’m humble enough and ready to put that work in. Obviously, it’s a great accomplishment, but we have bigger dreams and a bigger picture to fulfill.
Including this season, Harden has now earned All-Star honors in all eight of his seasons with the Rockets, and he’s finished in the top three of the league’s MVP voting on five separate occasions during those eight years (2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020). He won the award in 2018. “The Beard” is also eight-for-eight in playoff appearances during that run, which makes for the longest active streak of any NBA team.
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Harden and the Rockets are still searching for their first championship together, and their 2020 playoff run is set to begin Tuesday with a first-round series against Oklahoma City, his original NBA team. Game 1 between the Rockets and Thunder will tip off at 5:30 p.m. Central, with a national broadcast on TNT and a regional version (with Houston announcers) on AT&T SportsNet Southwest.
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