James Harden is one of the most polarizing players in NBA history. He changed the game by popularizing the step-back 3-pointer and his uncanny ability to get to the foul line. However, despite his dominance during the regular season, Harden’s playoff runs always ended in disappointment. Not only has he never won an NBA championship, but he’s also had notoriously poor postseason performances.
Because of this stark contrast, Jamal Crawford thinks Harden has one of the most complicated legacies ever.
Advertisement
“There’s no denying what he did in his prime run in Houston during the course of the regular season, his dominance, as he had in some ways mastered the game, like in some ways, in the regular season. Then the playoffs, the struggle came, and that’s why it’s a start contrast,” Crawford said on “The Dan Patrick Show.”
Harden just disappears in the playoffs
Harden had a dominant run with the Houston Rockets. In his nine seasons there, he averaged 29.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game, winning three straight scoring titles from 2018 to 2020, including averaging a career-high 36.1 points per game during the 2018-19 campaign. That year, Harden had a 32-game streak of 30 or more points, the second-longest such streak in NBA history.
Advertisement
Harden’s career scoring average is 24.0 points on 43.9 percent field goal shooting and 7.3 assists per game during the regular season. However, those numbers drop to 22.3 points on 42.6 percent shooting and 6.5 assists per game in the playoffs.
The Rockets had five 50-win seasons and four division titles with Harden at the helm, but even during his MVP season of 2017-18, when they won 65 games and had the league’s best record, the Rockets never advanced past the Western Conference finals.
“Would you rather have a guy like Wade, who didn’t have the same peak regular seasons but had more playoff success?” Crawford asked Patrick, “Or would you say, over the course of six months, this guy dominated, and then it just didn’t go well the last month or whatever?”
Advertisement
Patrick said he’d pick Wade.
Wade says Harden can get passive sometimes
Interestingly, Wade himself once addressed the so-called Harden Houdini act in the playoffs. According to Miami Heat legend, Harden is an incredible scorer and a great facilitator, and sometimes his unselfish side takes over.
“What I witnessed with James is that sometimes he gets into a very passive state,” the Hall of Famer said. “He’s such a great playmaker, and he sets the table for everyone, and sometimes that works against you — especially when you’re in the playoffs. You need to get yourself going, but you’re trying to get others going instead.”
Advertisement
This postseason has been no different for Harden. He was heavily scrutinized for his struggles after the Cleveland Cavaliers fell down 2-0 to the Detroit Pistons. But after his clutch performance in Game 3 and a 24-point double-double in Game 4, he’s somewhat made up for the early failures.
It remains to be seen whether he can sustain it throughout the series, and if they win, in the Eastern Conference finals against the red-hot New York Knicks.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on May 12, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.