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Par Joël Pütz | Journaliste sportif
Both NBA sacred beasts, James Harden and Russell Westbrook have particularly divided opinion during their respective careers. Renowned analyst Tim MacMahon recently weighed in between the two superstars.
In many ways, they’re mirror images of each other. Russell Westbrook and James Harden have had very similar paths, having started out as teammates with Kevin Durant at the Thunder. It wasn’t until the 2012 Finals loss that they parted ways… and that’s when they cemented themselves among the league’s elite.
Symbolically, they were MVPs back-to-back in 2017 and 2018, becoming two of the biggest stars of the orange ball. And to this day, they also remain without a single championship… Suffice to say, it’s not easy to decide between them, an exercise that Tim McMahon nevertheless indulged in on the Dan Patrick Show:
James Harden or Russell Westbrook, which one to choose?
I feel like Harden, probably when you rank them in terms of the echelons of NBA greatness. I mean, they’re both first-ballot Hall of Famers. Feel like Harden lands higher on that list, but has more scrutiny. His playoff failures have been spectacular, where it feels like most of Russ’ playoff failures, they didn’t have the better team, and he didn’t get the same sort of burden on his shoulders.
It’s crazy how they’ve both become journeyman-type guys, late in their careers. Now, Harden is still doing it at a high price point, and Harden’s the one still deciding when he wants to leave, where he wants to go. Whereas that’s not the case with Russ, he has been traded twice to the Utah Jazz over the last few years and not played a second for that franchise
Now with the Nuggets, Brodie continues to divide league observers by being at times excellent, at times catastrophic on the court. However, he was able to rise to the occasion during these playoffs, particularly at the end of the first round, which Denver played against… Harden’s Clippers, interestingly. This is enough to intrigue MacMahon:
Seriously, like with Russ, you keep on feeling, is this his last chance, and then you know he’ll get another one. Harden’s had a much better year this year, but Russ is still playing and had a much better game seven, and right now that’s all that really matters.
