L.A. Clippers guard James Harden. Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

James Harden 'floats' his way back to the basics against Mavs

By Sai Mohan | Last updated 4/29/24

Remember those years of James Harden in Houston when he'd rely on step-back threes and/or layups for most of his buckets? Despite being a three-level scorer, Harden had abandoned the mid-range game, largely due to the analytics-driven coaching of Mike D'Antoni and the Daryl Morey-led front office.

By his last season in Houston, in 2019-20, Harden had given up that scoring area to the extent that he attempted only 19 mid-range shots the entire year. As a result, Harden became easier to scheme for opposition coaches, who knew his tendencies — his game had become a tad too predictable.

On Sunday night, Harden returned to the basics, bringing back elements of his game from his early years in Oklahoma City. During the fourth quarter of his 33-point outing, Harden cooked the Mavs defense in the mid-range.

James Harden scored 15 4th quarter points in the win!

Harden This series
28 PTS, 8 AST, 6 3PT, 1 TO
22 PTS, 8 AST, 1 TO
21 PTS, 5 AST, 5 3PT (54% FG)
33 PTS, 7 AST, 4 3PT (70% FG)pic.twitter.com/wBr9N5NvN7
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) April 28, 2024

As Harden's shot chart indicates, "The Beard" attempted nine of his 17 shots from the mid-range area. He sank eight of them. Those shot charts looked a lot different during his stint in Houston.

Even the great Doris Burke couldn't help but praise Harden for reinventing the wheel at age 34.

"He wasn't taking those shots in Houston. This looks like Harden from Oklahoma City," Burke said during ABC's live broadcast.

Entering this year's playoffs, Harden was labeled as one of the players under the most pressure in light of his postseason flameouts with the Sixers in 2023 and 2022.

Thus far, Harden has answered the bell, averaging 20.3 points, 8.3 assists and 6.2 rebounds at an impressive 38 percent shooting from three. Harden has also played lockdown defense against difficult match-ups such as Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

More must-reads: