Hoops Hobby

James Harden was and still can be, on occasion, a devastating and unstoppable offensive force. He’s a 10x All-Star, 7x All-NBA, and a member of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team, meaning he’s considered one of the best 75 players in the history of the league.

One of the best 75 players in the history of the NBA. And despite that, his image as it currently stands is more a reflection of his 1 on 1, isolation play style that isn’t fun to watch, his lack of defensive effort, etc. In short, it’s focused on his flaws. He’s currently upset with the 76ers for not giving him a longer contract after taking less money. He’s moved around to several teams over the last several years. He’s not advanced to the NBA Finals since OKC days and has a reputation of disappearing in big playoff games, despite going against that for a few games in last season’s playoffs. That’s what’s being discussed around Harden right now.

Compared to other current stars of the league, his cards don’t carry the same hobby prestige or popularity. I posed a question for the most recent Crossover episode on this subject, but it seemed like the question was misplaced. Harden is clearly no longer in his prime, and that’s still better than many. But my thinking is that once we have some time removed from the end of Harden’s career, and possibly sooner, collectors and NBA fans in general are going to look back at Harden’s prime, the positives in his game, and the narrative will start to change.

We’re already starting to see this with Russell Westbrook. I see rare Westbrook Thunder cards being shared on Instagram all the time. Now that Westbrook is out of LA and making positive contributions on the Clippers, the nostalgia is already setting in for ‘young’ Westbrook. Another member of the 75th Anniversary team, by the way.

I’m interested to see how the rest of Harden’s career plays out, and how it plays out from within the hobby as well. Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing the sick Harden cards that will inevitably come back into the spotlight at the end of his career and when he goes into the HOF, and remembering Harden’s game for the dominant scorer he is, and not for what team he doesn’t want to play for.