Jeer The Beard?
Harden comes ‘home’ with extensive range of reactions expected
The emotions will run the gamut and, as always with reactions to James Harden over the years, will likely be extreme. The 6½ weeks since “the trade” have changed so much, but not that.
Harden will be back at Toyota Center on Wednesday for the first time since he made his infamous postgame concession speech, referring to his time leading the Rockets in the past tense, charging that their problems could not be fixed, and declaring that for eight seasons he had done all he could to lead the team with whom he became an NBA superstar.
The next day, the Harden era of Rockets basketball ended. Harden got the trade he
wanted, joining Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant with the Brooklyn Nets. The Rockets brought back a pile of draft picks and guard Victor Oladipo. The Nets soared. The Rockets, after initial success, have collapsed under the weight of crippling injuries and absences, limping to the reunion with a 12-game losing streak.
For a night, both can try to remember the good times, especially with former Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni returning with Harden as a Nets assistant.
Still, as with examining ruins and seeing what once stood, that could be difficult. Even mixed emotions can be elevated.
“I’m excited,” Harden told the media after Monday’s Brooklyn win at San Antonio in which he produced a familiar masterpiece (30 points, 15 assists, 14 rebounds). “Time there was great. Obviously, we came up short of a championship. Hopefully, the fans appreciated everything I’ve done on the court and off. Once it’s a place I call home, it’s always home. I feel like I’m still part of the struggles and everything they go through.”
Harden’s exit played a role in what the Rockets are going through on the floor, having brought much of the dysfunction that marked the start of the season and the beginning of the end of his Houston tenure. But the Rockets seemed to have recovered from that, winning seven of eight games before an injury to Christian Wood began a spiral to the losing streak.
When Harden cited Houston’s struggles, however, he seemed to refer to the aftermath of the winter storm and the power and water crises it brought.
He has for weeks been steadfast in expressing his affection for his adopted hometown. Asked what it will mean to him to be back in Houston, Harden offered none of the usually false “just another game” platitudes that often accompany the run-up to similar homecomings. He said it will mean “everything.”
“I’ve been there eight years and still reside there in essence of a house,” Harden said. “My plan is to touch as many people as I can in the sense of whether it’s food, whether it’s water, building homes, whether it’s making them smile, whatever the case may be. Just trying to touch thousands and thousands of people in that city because they did that for me and they showed me and my family that much love.
“That’s still going on. That process is still going on as far as trying to give back to that city. Nothing but love and respect. I’m excited to see some familiar faces and play against the Rockets.”
The occasion could offer healing after the breakup. The Rockets will show a tribute video. Public address announcer Matt Thomas plans his usual call of Harden’s name — “From Arizona State …” — as if he were still the last Rockets player introduced. There will be in excess of 3,000 fans in attendance in addition to an ESPN spotlight.
There will also be more attention directed to the Rockets’ struggles in contrast to Harden’s success. The Nets have been on a roll, even with Durant out. Harden was the Eastern Conference player of the month for February, averaging 25.6 points on 49.1 percent shooting and 42.9 percent 3-point shooting, along with 8.8 rebounds and 10.7 assists.
After eight seasons of producing statistical absurdities with the Rockets, including many that were unprecedented, on Monday he became the first player since individual turnovers were first tracked in 1977 to have at least 30 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds without a turnover.
For the Rockets, the loss to the Cavaliers that night made it difficult to even consider their role in a game circled on the calendar since the day the trade of Harden was announced.
“We just have to find a way to win,” Oladipo said. “Everyone understands what the situation is with the next game, but it’s just about trying to win at this point, whether we were playing them or anyone else.”
Harden is back to playing at his Houston MVP level, leading the NBA in assists, as he did with the Rockets in 2016-17 when D’Antoni made him a point guard. His 25.2 points per game matches his career average. Though that falls short of the 29.6 points he averaged with the Rockets, he is shooting better.
He will have to find the location of the visitors’ locker room, moved as part of the COVID-19 protocols. And because of league health and safety policy, he is not permitted to stay in his own home.
Still, amid reminders of all that has changed, memories have not.
“Yeah, I’m excited,” Harden said. “Going back to Houston, where I basically had an unbelievable career. They showed me mad love and respect. I’m just excited to be playing in front of those fans.”
“I feel like I’m still part of the struggles and everything they go through.”
James Harden, on Houston