Former Thunder star James Harden ranked No. 34 in NBA history
The Bleacher Report NBA staff took advantage of the downtime. They ranked the top 100 NBA players of all time. The extensive project had an all-hands-on-deck approach. They conjured up the votes and released a naturally controversial ranking.
While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's exclusion might be one of the biggest snubs, there were other players who represented the Oklahoma City Thunder among the 100 players. One is James Harden. He came in at No. 34 spot in the rankings.
Harden spent the first three of his 16 seasons on the Thunder. His stint was highlighted by a 2011-12 Sixth Man of the Year award. He was the third-best player on an NBA Finals team. Not agreeing to an extension, he was shockingly traded to the Houston Rockets, where he blossomed into one of the greatest scorers of all time and an MVP winner.
"One of the most devastating pick-and-roll forces the game has ever seen, Harden also developed into an unstoppable isolation threat," Bleacher Report wrote. "Elite quickness, strength and craft made it impossible to stay in front of Harden, and then he perfected a step-back three-pointer so deadly that opponents actually preferred to play defense behind him."
While Harden went on to enjoy historic individual success, he's yet to return to the NBA Finals since 2012. That's the one hiccup to a near-perfect resume of one of the greatest players ever. He was a consistent 30-plus point threat in his prime and a perennial All-Star and All-NBA member.
"An extremely heliocentric star who has led the league in usage rate twice, never consistently defended and couldn't lead his team to a title," Bleacher Report wrote. "Harden has more than his share of detractors. But he was also among the best offensive players in the game for a decade. That matters."
Harden has spent most of his career with the Rockets. He's also had stops on the Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and LA Clippers. The 35-year-old has taken a step back, but remains one of the league's top players.
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