James Harden presents another problem for the Indiana Pacers
By Luke Parrish
Houston Rockets superstar James Harden will be in Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Wednesday.
After an offseason surrounded by trade speculation, rumors, and drama, James Harden returned to the Rockets. Similar to the Victor Oladipo storylines of the offseason, Harden dealt with scrutiny and rumors that turned into nothing substantial and led him back to his team to start the season. Now, Harden will play the Indiana Pacers for the first time of the season when the Rockets travel to Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Harden has not taken a step back despite looking a bit out of shape in his return from an eventful offseason. He is leading the NBA with 33.0 points per game in four appearances on the season. He is also second in the league with 10.8 assists per game, trailing only Nikola Jokic. His offensive prowess makes him arguably the most unguardable player in the entire league.
Even though it’s been a small sample size, Harden is shooting a career-best 40.9 percent from beyond the arc. Harden has never shot over 39 percent in a season, and regression is possible, but he is off to a hot start. Given that the Pacers have not defended the perimeter well, Harden may be in for a huge night.
Indiana’s opponents are shooting a league-low 27 three-point attempts per game but are connecting on a league-high 41.8 percent of their attempts. If Harden decides to attack from range, he may have some success against a low-volume, low-success perimeter defense.
With John Wall looking more and more like the John Wall we are accustomed to, the Rockets could hit their stride at any moment. Wall and Harden are about as deadly of a duo in the backcourt as you’ll find and the Pacers will certainly have their hands full.
The starting lineup of Malcolm Brogdon, Victor Oladipo, and Aaron Holiday has been fun but it may be time to slide Justin Holiday into Aaron’s spot in order to combat Houston’s explosiveness. Aaron Holiday’s struggles on defense stem from quick guards beating him to the corner and getting to the rim. Justin is a much better defender and would bring size to the lineup that lacks wing defense.