The Oklahoma City Thunder took the Houston Rockets to the closing seconds of Game 7 in their first-round playoff series last season. The reason they were so close: Undrafted rookie Luguentz Dort contained James Harden better than any other player had, not only on the Thunder, but around the league.
The league took notice and is continuing to watch. Dort was featured in a FiveThirtyEight article on Monday that reviewed some of the Canadian’s background, his emergence, and just how he defended Harden so effectively.
“I couldn’t fear him,” Dort said to the outlet. “I know he’s one of the … no, he is the best scorer in the NBA. I can’t go and be like, ‘Ah, man, I’m playing the best scorer in the NBA.’ I can’t have that mindset.”
Dort watched film with Chris Paul, who spent two seasons on the Houston Rockets with Harden. His preparation worked well. Harden’s game is predicated on drawing fouls, and Dort’s ability to move laterally without putting his hands in the guard’s way prevented Harden from getting to the free throw line at the same frequency he normally does.
Harden is a master at drawing fouls not just off the drive, but on 3-pointers and step-backs.
“It’s not trying to block his shot — only thing you can do is make it harder,” Dort said. “Sometimes with my [stance], [I tried] to not give him a side. To stay square up. Those two things really helped.”
While Dort played as good of defense against Harden as the Thunder could have hoped, he also broke out offensively in Game 7, scoring 30 points and joining Kobe Bryant and LeBron James as the only players to break 25 points at 21 years old or younger.
If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you remember all this. Dort’s series was one of the highlights of the series for the Thunder.
FiveThirtyEight goes beyond the NBA. The article explains how he was a soccer player before basketball and the last pick of his Montreal youth basketball team when he was 12.
Coach Nelson Ossé recognized his work ethic but also saw Dort needed extra motivation in school.
You’ve got to actually love defending. And Lu’s been defending the best player on the other team at a young age,” Ossé said.
