A core defender of a championship-contending team, shooting 4-of-11 shots, 3 points, 7 shots, cutting 14+8+4, if you only look at the data, you will not think that this may be Rondo's data.
Perhaps Rondo's data is a little more comprehensive than this, after all, Rondo's data is generally economical and practical 3 pairs. But this data is Harden's data.
In the game with the Wizards, Harden is invisible again, even if Durant shoots 13 of 24 in the whole game, 3 points and 8 shots, and the whole game exploded 38 + 10 + 4 data, but the lonely Durant could not resist the Wizards' full bloom in the fourth quarter.
The Wizards scored a 42-17 single-quarter score in the final quarter, and with the offensive frenzy of the fourth quarter, the Bulls laughed to the end in this strong dialogue in the East, once again adding a strong enough mark to their strong team label.
Jazz, the Nets do not seem to have the slightest resistance in front of the Bulls, and the prospects of the Bulls this season will be particularly expected. Back to Harden.
If Harden just thinks of himself as a qualified core guard for the Nets, Harden is now averaging 18.3+ 7.7 + 8.5 per game, a slightly enhanced version of Rondo.
Maybe Rondo can win the championship by playing like this, two years ago Rondo became the Lakers' playoffs, the savior at every critical moment, and finally Rondo won a championship ring for the first time in the last year of his career.
Rondo's career is really legendary, the rookie season can be with the Celtics 3 Giants, as the main point guard to win the championship, the end of the career to the Lakers can still become an indispensable piece of the championship puzzle.
But if Harden just plays the way Rondo plays, it may be difficult for Harden to win the championship he loves. Why? Because of the different positioning, the Nets' positioning of Harden is not just a slightly enhanced version of Rondo.
Both early and late in his career, Rondo was not the one on the team to take on the main offense. During the Celtic period, the Celtics 3 giants can take over the game at different stages of the game, and Rondo's main task on the court is to sort out the offense and provide a more relaxed shooting environment for the 3 giants.
During the Lakers period, Rondo's task was to keep the Lakers' second team from falling behind in the hard fight with the opponent, so Rondo's positioning was more of a deputy of the team's main player. He is indeed important, but the task of attacking the city is stronger in the team, and there are more capable people to complete.
What about Harden? Is Harden just a deputy in the Nets? I believe that the Nets will not position Harden so much, whether it is the value or the coach gives Harden the space to shoot, Harden is not just the current data. But if Harden continues to perform this way, perhaps Harden's value will be greatly hurt.
Harden rejected the Nets' billion-dollar contract extension, if Harden continues to play with Rondo's defense, perhaps the Nets will re-rate Harden's contract size, then Harden may not have the initiative to sign the contract.
So Harden's game after the Nets should be more willing to take over the game, and it is true that Durant can become a strong point that the Nets will always trust in the game, but Harden can definitely become the person who takes over the game in the final moments of the game from the state of the past years. If Harden positions himself incorrectly, the Nets may have a hard time winning the final championship!