James Harden and the Houston Rockets have something to prove this coming season. They took a step back this past season, proven by their firing of head coach Kevin McHale after dropping seven of their first eleven games. The Rockets’ lone primary catalyst in James Harden still performed at an All-Star level, but lack of depth and injuries made his team significantly weaker against the likes of Golden State. As an eighth seed in the playoffs, the Rockets fell to the Warriors 4-1 in the first round.
The Rockets are going to be a different team after making some rearrangements this offseason. Patrick Beverley told Basketball Insiders that he expects James Harden to have an MVP season and lead the Rockets to the promised land:
When asked what he expects from Harden in the upcoming season, Beverley told Basketball Insiders: “MVP and leading us to the Finals. Simple.”
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Beverley also said that Harden’s mentality and approach seems to have changed since last season.
“Yes it has,” Beverley said. “James is like a brother to me, so I’ve seen him improve each year in [regards to] him being a leader.”
Harden was legitimately right in the thick of the MVP conversation with Stephen Curry in 2014-15 when he averaged 27 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds and led the Rockets to a 56-win regular season and a no. 2 seed going into the postseason.
The popular argument for Harden against Curry at that time was his ability to carry a less talented team on paper to an elite standing. Harden will be an interesting watch this season since he now has a bit more talent to work with in Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson, not to mention the influence of his new head coach, Mike D’Antoni, who believes Harden can average 12-13 assists per game.
The likelihood of Harden being able to win MVP has a definite edge over the chance of the Rockets making the Finals. Their competitive potential is more intriguing, but their competition has improved as well. Still, with this new group and system, Harden should definitely be making an individual run at an MVP season, which is still needed for the Rockets to be a respectable contender in the West.
