James Harden is one of the most prolific scorers of this basketball era. He led the league in scoring in three consecutive seasons from 2018 to 2020 while playing for the Houston Rockets , averaging 33.7 points per game during that span.
In the 2018-19 campaign, "The Beard" had a month that resembled the best run of Kobe Bryant's NBA career. "The Mamba" recorded nine consecutive 40-point games in February 2003, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a 7-2 record—he averaged 40.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per contest during that span. Meanwhile, Harden had a torrid January 2019, averaging 43.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 2.1 steals, and 1.2 blocks on a 60.3% true shooting percentage in 14 games—the Rockets went 8-6.
Looking back, DeMar DeRozan , who grew up idolizing Kobe, couldn't help but marvel at the level of greatness Harden displayed throughout his iconic run.
"The run James had, it's crazy," he said on Jeff Teague's Club520 podcast. "The run James had was fu****; that ain't even a video game. That sh** was like fu**** Space Jam. Because if you didn't watch the game, you just knew when you checked the box score it was gonna be something fu**** crazy. That run he had, bro, that sh** was fu**** incredible, and how he did it, the sh** looked like it was with no effort."
Harden's historic scoring run
Interestingly, Harden's run began against the Lakers. On December 13, 2018, he recorded a 50-point triple-double . Including that game, he averaged 40.8 points per game for the rest of December.
Then came his historic January 2019, which included three 50-point games and eight 40-point performances by Harden. He 'cooled down' after that but still averaged 37.6 points in February, 35.6 in March, and 30.4 in April while leading the Rockets to a 24-8 record in their last 32 regular season games.
"Kobe is my GOAT, all that and everything," DeRozan continued. "But it's like, what's real is real. The sh** James was doing, I don't think we ever see that again. We won't. That man was…"
Harden post-Houston
"The Beard" finished that regular season averaging a career-high 36.1 points, along with 6.6 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. He finished second behind Giannis Antetokounmpo in the MVP voting.
Meanwhile, the Rockets recovered from a poor 12-14 start to finish the season with 53 wins. However, they ran into the Warriors for the second straight year and were eliminated 4-2 in the second round of the playoffs.
Harden followed that up with a 2019-20 campaign in which he averaged 34.3 points and led the Rockets to a third straight Southwest Division title. But once again, they were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs. After the season, GM Daryl Morey and head coach Mike D'Antonio left Houston, and soon after, "The Beard" demanded a trade.
Since leaving Houston, however, James hasn't found the same success. He's played for three teams in the last four years—Brooklyn, Philadelphia, and the L.A. Clippers.
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