As the 2009 double males, Harden and Curry are both late-stage players, and they were not pinned on high hopes at the beginning of their careers.
Harden started with the Thunder's sixth man, and if he hadn't been dissatisfied with the contract and been traded to the Rockets by the Thunder, his original plan would have been to give Durant and Westbrook a lifetime to play the sixth man.
Curry was also not seen as the core at the beginning of his career, and was almost sent to the Bucks during the Warriors' trade with Bogut in 2012, only to escape due to an ankle injury.
After being traded by the Thunder, Harden grew into the best scoring guard in the rockets step by step, not only got the scoring king, but also got the MVP, and the use of rules forced the league to modify the standards and rules of blowing penalties.
Curry, who escaped the disaster, gradually became the absolute core of the Warriors because of the departure of Montaellis, helping the team win the championship three times in 5 years, not only crowning the historical three-point king, but also completely changing the tactical value of the three-pointer in the league and accelerating the arrival of the small-ball era.
In the peak years of the two, the Rockets and Warriors led by the two happened to be the two best teams in the West, and harden and Curry, the 09 pair, were also the best players in the league.
But in just two years, the gap between Harden and Curry has been completely exposed, and the Warriors led by Curry have experienced a two-year downturn and returned to the playoffs this season, leading the Nuggets 3-1 by a large margin, and it is no accident that they will easily advance to the second round.
And judging from the overall effect of the Warriors, the Warriors are completely the favorite to compete for the championship this season, because they have all the elements that a championship team needs.
The overall squad is well-placed, with not only the killer five, but also trustworthy substitutes such as Bjelica, Iguodala, Ototot port, Peyton II, and Cuminga.
The coaching staff is still the winning team of the past, and this season's lineup has a full run-in chemistry, which can be described as a good offensive and defensive team.
More importantly, the core players are experienced and accustomed to big winds and waves, and the players who can complete the final at key moments are at least Curry, Klay and Iguodala.
Curry remains at the heart of this Warriors, even though he played as a substitute in his first four games, but in four games, he made 70 shots and scored 110 points.
In four games, Curry averaged 27.5 points, 3 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.5 steals, 0.5 blocks per game, 38.9 percent from three-point range and 51.4 percent overall.
You know, this is Curry trapped in the early stage of his return from injury, averaging only 28.5 minutes per game, which shows his terrifying efficiency.
And Curry has further transformed this season, defense is no longer a short board, coupled with the still trustworthy attributes at key moments, this season will be another opportunity for Curry to impact the championship.
In contrast, Harden, who has continuously forced the palace to leave the Rockets and Nets, has only made a total of 67 shots in the first five games of the series, scoring 92 points.
Averaging 40.2 minutes per game, he handed over 18.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 9.2 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.4 blocks, which seems to be very comprehensive, but the overall shooting rate is only a pitiful 37.2%, and the personal offensive desire is even more annoying.
After the G5 loss was pulled to 2-3, the core of the team, Embiid, could not bear to publicly name Harden and ask him to increase his aggression, and coach Rivers also publicly asked Harden to increase aggression more than once after Harden joined.
In just two years, from the 09 double males who dominated the league in the past to the current completely different situation, the gap between Curry and Harden has also been fully reflected.
Don't look at Curry's thinner and thinner face, but so far in his career, no matter what kind of difficulties he faces, Curry's performance is tough enough, and the more difficult the situation, Curry tends to burst out more energy.
In contrast, harden, who is large and fierce, whenever he faces a difficult situation, whether it is the Rockets who lead the team as an absolute core, or the Nets and 76ers after that, Harden has never completed self-proof in adversity, which is the fundamental reason why the two people's entire careers are completely different from the current situation.