Los Angeles Clippers star James Harden doesn't get too much love from fans and pundits these days, thanks in large part to the bridges he has burnt over the past few years, but his peers recognize that he stands tall among the greatest shooting guards to ever play the game. In particular, retired point guard Jeff Teague stood firm on his take that Harden is a better player all-time than Dwyane Wade.
Speaking on The OGs Podcast with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller presented by Playmaker HQ, Teague explained how Harden, back in his prime days with the Houston Rockets, was a better player than Wade was since the Beard was able to consistently carry his team deep into the playoffs.
“Harden is the #3 shooting guard of all-time. James Harden when he was by himself in Houston, bro they was going to the Western Conference Finals every year. They were doing all this stuff and he was unbelievable, averaging averaging 35-8-8. He was unguardable!” Teague said.
“I ain’t trying to disrespect D-Wade but before [LeBron James] got there, Miami was competing with us, the [Atlanta] Hawks. Then Bron came and it’s a different stratosphere.”
Jeff Teague does make some salient points; the presence of James Harden meant that the Rockets had a high floor, putting them in the mix in the Western Conference every year, while Dwyane Wade, towards the tail end of the 2000s, struggled to lift the Miami Heat to great heights. (The Heat exited the playoffs in the first round in two consecutive seasons before James arrived.)
However, it's a bit ingenious for Teague to just disregard how Wade was able to win a championship in just his age-24 season as the Heat's best player in 2006. Wade was also able to adjust his game to accommodate the arrival of LeBron James, a high-usage star, and won two more championships. Meanwhile, Harden has had unsightly playoff lowlights, and he's been unable to break through despite being a member of stacked teams.
Teague received backlash for this take the first time he dropped it, so at the very least, it's a positive to see him stick with what he believes no matter what.
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