The Rockets may have been bounced early from the playoffs this year, but they were able to put together another strong regular season in 2018-19.
There are areas they can improve upon, even though there were individuals who had immense success.
RocketsWire is reviewing each player, starter or bench player, for the Rockets to recap last season.
James Harden
Harden posted a career high in points per game, which also led the league (36.1). Harden was a unanimous selection to the All-NBA First team. Harden became the only player in NBA history to average 35 points and seven assists in a season. Harden is now the only player NBA history to have scored at least 30 points on every team in the league.
So, this season was not just a success, but one of the best for a player in NBA history. Right?
Probably wrong — at least to Harden. The reigning MVP will likely not want to celebrate the season after his team was yet again bounced by the Golden State Warriors. This time, it came early — even though Harden also had the top-scoring postseason of his career — in the second round and in six games.
Wait wait … there are still more accomplishments to list.
Harden had 32-game streak scoring at least 30 points per game, which was the second-longest in NBA history. During the run, he averaged a whopping 41.1 points per game which including dropping 61 at Madison Square Garden. And probably most importantly, he carried the team on its back after it fell to 11-12 and 14th in the Western Conference, going 21-11 thereafter.
The Beard clamped down on defense this season, and his step-back three-pointer became one of the most feared and most deadly in the league.
We are giving Harden an A for the 2018-19 season.
How would you grade Harden’s 2018-19 season?
