“Now the game and the beard are together.” – That’s James Harden with the all-time defining quote about himself. It comes from an interview with the host of “Sports Pilipinas” in the Philippines:
Chino Trinidad (CT): Which came first, the game or the beard?
James Harden (JH): Definitely the game. The game I had since I was little, just growing up in the streets playing with my friends. And being in middle school and high school that’s where the beard started growing a little bit. Now the game and the beard are together.
CT: So now, you can’t take one without the other, yeah? It comes in a package, yeah?
JH: It’s a package deal.
It’s like Sampson’s hair and his strength, I guess. It’s only a matter of time until opposing teams start sending groupies to Harden’s room with a razor. Shoot, I hope Mark Jackson doesn’t read this.
The Young and the Dwightless – As the summer doldrums rank-a-thon continues across the basketball interwebs, ESPN Insider is ranking the top teams for under 25 talent. Grabbing the sixth slot (behind OKC, NOLA, Utah, Cleveland, and Chicago) is Houston:
Players:Isaiah Canaan (22), Robert Covington (22), James Harden (23), Terrence Jones (21), Jeremy Lin (24), Donatas Motiejunas (22), Chandler Parsons (24), Greg Smith (22), BJ Young (20)
Harden exploded out of the gates last season and fulfilled all of Houston’s wildest dreams with him as its franchise player: He bought into the coaching system, scored points efficiently, made his teammates better and, best of all, made Houston an attractive enough basketball destination to lure Dwight Howard in free agency. Parsons was another pleasant development as an efficient 3-point shooting wing with size and playmaking ability, and perhaps an underrated defensive game. Lin was perhaps overextended in his first season post-”Linsanity,” but with an increased emphasis on getting the ball into the post and more of a ballhandling responsibility for Parsons, Lin can increase his efficiency.
Houston’s remaining young players are somewhat of a mixed bag, with Jones and Motiejunas having the most promise, as both players look to find their niche in the league. Rookie Canaan also has the potential to be a specialist who fits in with Houston’s high-octane attack.
GSW came in at seventh (hold that thought).
The worldwide leader divided the rankings into the top 15 U-25 teams and the bottom fifteen. Of Dwight Howard’s suitors from this summer, GSW was the only one besides Houston in the top nineteen. The others were Atlanta (20), Dallas (29), and L.A. (dead last at 30). Looking at it from that perspective, Dwight had two options where the team would get better as he gets older: Houston and the Dubs. Thankfully, Houston was the only team he could come to without a sign-and-trade. So there’s the process-of-elimination theory of why Howard is a Rocket.
Tweet That – Ed Kupfer is an analyst for the Rockets:
Travel miles for NBA 2013-14 season, by team. pic.twitter.com/sIjlwOniCD
— Ed Kupfer (@EdKupfer) August 7, 2013
That puts Houston a little above average overall, but right in the middle of the pack for a Western Conference team. I can’t find any fuel for conspiracy theories here. Timberwolves fans may feel differently.
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