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The Los Angeles Clippers will look a bit different this season with the departure of Paul George, but they still have star-level talent in James Harden and Kawhi Leonard. During Clippers' Media Day, Harden was asked what the team's play style would look like this season, and he related it to a player who recently made the NBA Finals.
“It’s definitely going to involve a lot of me. There was talk when I was in Houston… ‘You can’t win like that.’ You just saw a guy [Luka Doncic] last season make the Finals playing the same exact way I played,” Harden said.
When Harden was with the Rockets, many people believed that he wouldn't be able to win a championship with how he plays. One of those people was the late Kobe Bryant, who said it during an interview alongside Tracy McGrady.
“I’m not a fan of it in terms of winning championships,” Bryant said. “I don’t think that style’s ever gonna win championships. But at the same time, you have to keep your team’s head above water to win games. You have to do what you have to do to win games. And he’s doing that.”
Harden has been known as being a ball-dominant player, but he also knows how to get his teammates involved as well. Luka Doncic plays in a very similar way, but last season he didn't need to have the ball all the time because of Kyrie Irving. Hopefully, Leonard is able to stay healthy so he can be that other option that Harden can defer to.
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James Harden will have a different role this year with Clippers
With one less person who will have to demand the ball for the Clippers this season, Harden is already expecting his role to change. When asked what his role will look like, Harden used one specific word.
“Aggressive,” Harden said. “Last year, we tried to figure it out, with guys and their roles … It was pretty difficult. This year for me, I've got a clear space in what I need to be doing.”
This season, the Clippers will have two main options in Harden and Kawhi Leonard, with several solid role players surrounding them who can shoot the ball and defend. That should work well for a player like Harden, who has always been known as a playmaker but can also get off his own shot as well. The biggest area for concern for the Clippers will be staying healthy, something they've had a hard time doing for the past few years.
