James Harden’s terrible start is about more than the NBA’s rule change

The specter of Kyrie Irving’s prolonged absence from the Brooklyn Nets was at all times going to place a heavier burden of shot creation on the shoulders of James Harden. For the final decade, there was maybe no participant within the NBA higher suited to deal with it.

When the Nets cashed in all their future belongings to rescue Harden from the Houston Rockets a couple of weeks into final season, he was presupposed to be Brooklyn’s third famous person and the ultimate piece of a crew that had the expertise to turn into a dynasty. This could have been his basketball nirvana: flanked by two of the best shooters ever in Kevin Durant and Irving, plus top-of-the-line capturing specialists in in the present day’s recreation in Joe Harris, Harden had an ocean of room to saunter into the lane and do what he does finest. Specifically: generate layups and free throws for himself, and huge open three-pointers for his teammates.

Harden carried Brooklyn up the Japanese Convention standings final season whereas Durant and Irving missed important time. The Nets put up probably the most environment friendly offense in league historical past even with their huge three barely sharing the court docket collectively within the common season. It wasn’t a stretch to suppose a wholesome Nets crew with Durant, Harden, and Irving would roll via the playoffs on the way in which to a championship.

Sadly for the Nets, they weren’t wholesome. Harden went down with a hamstring damage within the first minute of the primary recreation of Brooklyn’s second spherical sequence in opposition to the Milwaukee Bucks. He would return for the final three video games of the sequence, however he clearly wasn’t himself. By the point he got here again, Irving was additionally damage, and never even Durant’s historic particular person scoring run might save the season. Possibly it will have been totally different if Durant wore slightly smaller shoes, nevertheless it wasn’t meant to be.

Brooklyn entered this season because the overwhelming favorite to win the championship. That was earlier than Irving took himself out of motion by refusing to take the Covid-19 vaccine. Whereas the absence of Irving restricted simply how explosive Brooklyn may very well be, they still had enough weapons to be considered the favorite even with out him. That’s as a result of Harden may very well be counted on to hold the offensive shot creation simply as he had accomplished all through his profession.

At first of the brand new season, it’s clear it’s not working but. The Nets misplaced at residence to the Miami Heat, 106-93, on Wednesday night time to fall to 2-3 on the season. By some means, Brooklyn has the third worst offense in the NBA.

The largest cause for Brooklyn’s sluggish begin, apart from Irving’s absence, has been Harden’s uncharacteristically sluggish play. Harden’s numbers are brutal for his requirements via the primary 5 video games: He’s averaging 16.6 factors, eight assists, and 4.6 turnovers per recreation on paltry 49.1 % true capturing. He’s among the many NBA leaders in turnovers, too.

Harden is failing to attain effectively for quite a lot of causes, nevertheless it’s straightforward to level to his lack of free throws as the principle offender. Harden has been the league’s most dependable free throw generator for years, however this season he’s solely attending to the road 3 times per recreation. As lately because the 2019-2020 season, Harden was drawing 11.8 free throw makes an attempt per recreation.

This isn’t precisely a coincidence: the NBA made it a point of emphasis over the offseason to no longer reward offensive players who grift their way into shooting fouls. Harden was at all times the most important poster little one for such a free throw manufacturing. For a decade, Harden went up for a shot as quickly as he fooled defenders into reaching for the ball on his drives. Add in a snap of the pinnacle, and it was two free throws from the officers virtually each time.

NBA refs are now not giving free throws in these conditions. All of a sudden, Harden isn’t getting the calls he’s used to, and his offensive effectivity is plummeting partially due to it.

Harden is the NBA’s largest offender when it got here to baiting the refs into calling capturing fouls. The league modified its guidelines, and now Harden misplaced his effectiveness. It’s straightforward, proper?

In fact not. Harden, at 32 years previous, virtually actually isn’t utterly washed proper now. His sluggish begin comes all the way down to quite a lot of elements, and the rule change is one among them. The larger challenge would be the lingering results of the hamstring damage he suffered within the playoffs again in June.

Harden spoke about his early season issues after the loss to Miami, and stated he spent most of his summer time rehabbing his damage. The time Harden often spends within the health club coming up with some new absurd tricks to dominate his friends was changed by doing boring energy constructing workout routines together with his injured leg.

Harden has been one of many recreation’s most sturdy superstars since he started his rise in Houston. Now he’s 32 years previous. He principally self-sabotaged the beginning of final season as a approach to get out of Houston, exhibiting up clearly out of practice and disinterested. He finally performed his method again into form and was wonderful for the Nets earlier than the damage within the playoffs. The damage impacted him all through the offseason when he’d usually be fine-tuning his recreation.

The rule modifications are enjoying a component, too. Offensive effectivity is down all through the league to begin this season, and Harden isn’t the one participant adjusting to how the sport is now being referred to as. Most consider this was a optimistic change by the NBA to create fewer free throws and higher recreation move, however the gamers who had been accustomed to issues being referred to as a sure method for thus lengthy will want a bit time to recalibrate. Harden isn’t any totally different.

Harden continues to be seeking to regain his explosiveness. He isn’t dusting defenders off the dribble for blow-bys as frequently as he often does. He isn’t getting as a lot raise across the basket, both. Add in his previous foul looking tips now not working, and it’s been a troublesome begin to the season.

Don’t name Harden washed but. That is actually one of many best scorers in league historical past. Few gamers have ever been so artistic with the ball of their arms. Harden will doubtless determine it out as he at all times does. It simply isn’t occurring instantly thanks largely to his lingering hamstring damage from final yr.

Harden will get more healthy because the season goes on, and he’ll regulate to how the sport is being referred to as. There’s an opportunity Irving will get again on the ground finally this season too if New York modifications its legal guidelines round vaccination. That is actually a tough begin for Brooklyn, however there may be an excessive amount of season left to jot down off Harden or the Nets proper now.