The stats don't lie|No. 1 out of 240 players: That's what Harden is worth

The All-Star weekend is over, and Harden, who has not been selected as an All-Star for two years in a row, will continue to move forward with the Clippers to chase bigger goals.

Bucks coach Docs Doc Doc Doc T The stats also prove how much Harden has improved the Clippers, and if they can keep the roster healthy, the team does have a good chance of challenging for the first championship in 54-year franchise history.

Ranked 1st out of 240 players

Let's take a look at Harden's stats first, since Harden joined the Clippers, when he is on the court, the Clippers can win the opponent by 10.1 points per 100 possessions, and when he is not on the court, the Clippers lose to the opponent by 8.4 points per 100 possessions, and the efficiency difference between the two is 18.5 points. According to the NBA's website, this is the biggest efficiency difference among the 240 players who have played at least 750 minutes for the same team this season. This is enough to show how much influence Harden has on this Clippers team in his absence.

In addition, in the four-man combination of the Clippers who have played at least 100 minutes together, only one player in the top five teams with a net score of 100 rounds is among them, and that is Harden. Among them, the highest net score is the four-man group of Harden + George + Xiaoka + Powell, who can win the opponent by 32.1 points in 100 rounds. The core of the Clippers is still small cards, but the arrival of Harden has taken the pressure off his teammates and improved their performance.

The Clippers have a 33-10 record in their last 43 games, the highest record in the West in the same period, and during that time, the Clippers have reached 121.3 offensive efficiency, which is the first in the league during the same period.

Harden has two career highs

So far this season, Harden has averaged 17.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, 8.4 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game, shooting 45% from the field, 42.1% from three-point range and 87.4% from the free throw line. He averaged career highs in blocks per game and three-point shooting. However, he was not selected as an All-Star this season and has been out for two years in a row. While the American media called Harden a "lost pearl", it also analyzed Harden's votes, and it was indeed difficult for him to get a chance to be selected in the highly competitive Western backcourt.

Harden's players voted 8th in the Western backcourt and fans voted 6th in the Western backcourt and didn't receive a media vote. In the end, he tied Booker and Fox for sixth in the Western backcourt in terms of votes, behind Doncic, Alexander, Curry, Edwards and Irving.

Not being an All-Star for two years in a row may make Harden's fans uncomfortable, but Harden himself seems to have seen it. In an interview with Clippers reporter Law Murray, Harden said, "I have bigger goals, scoring titles, assist champions, All-Star stars, regular season MVPs...... I've done all of this, and I'm here (the Clippers) for one reason, and I'm sure everybody knows what the reason is. ”

The Clippers face schedule challenges

The Clippers are currently 36-17 and third in the West, 1.5 wins away from the second-place Thunder and two wins away from the top-ranked Timberwolves. Many fans expect the Clippers to win the regular season record of No. 1 in the West, but it is not an easy task. On the one hand, the Timberwolves and Thunder are in good shape, and on the other hand, the rest of the Clippers' schedule presents no small challenges.

According to the data, the Clippers have the 7th most difficult schedule in the league (note: the higher the ranking, the harder it is), while their main competitors for the first place in the West, the Timberwolves, the Thunder and the Nuggets are 20th, 24th and 23rd, respectively.

The NBA's official website also says that the Clippers are one of only three teams in the league with 29 games left, and they are also one of only four teams with seven back-to-backs left. In addition, the Clippers are one of the two teams in the league with two remaining games in seven days and five games.

How can the Clippers finish in the West, and what will they achieve this season?