James Harden isn’t known to be a great defender, but he played some exceptional defense in one sequence during Monday’s game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the San Antonio Spurs. In the first quarter of the contest, Harden caused havoc with some incredibly well-timed deflections.
What amazes me the most about this sequence is just how nonchalant Harden was. It looked like he was barely putting in any effort, but managed to completely wreck that offensive play.
Harden has been criticized a fair bit over the years for giving little to no effort on defense. It was always all offense when it came to him and I wonder how much better of a defender he could have been at his peak if he tried harder.
Getting back to this game, while Harden played some great defense on that play, that quarter belonged to the Spurs. They won it 40-14 and it looked like the Clippers were headed toward a fifth-straight loss at the Intuit Dome. Harden and his teammates ensured, though, that their fans’ wait for a first win at their new home arena would end that night.
The Clippers cut the Spurs lead down to 56-48 by halftime and were only down four points at the end of the third quarter. They then dominated in the final period to come away with a 113-104 win. The Clippers improved to 3-4 on the season with that result and are now 11th in the standings in the West.
Harden finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, four assists, one steal, and three blocks against the Spurs. The 35-year-old was 6-10 from the field, 3-5 from three, and 2-4 from the line.
It’s been a good start to the season for Harden. The 10-time All-Star is averaging 21.1 points, 8.7 rebounds, 9.9 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game in 2024-25 and is a big reason why this team hasn’t hit rock-bottom despite Kawhi Leonard’s absence and Paul George’s departure.
James Harden Had A Hilarious Reaction To The Clippers Finally Winning At The Intuit Dome
The Clippers suffered some heartbreaking losses at their new home before finally getting this win and the players were understandably thrilled postgame. Harden hilariously admitted, though, that he thought the arena was cursed.
“I thought this s*** was cursed at first,” Harden said. “Steve (Ballmer) came in here making jokes about it. But finally, to get a win at home feel good. I know Steve feel good. For us, it feels good, so just got to keep going. We got another one on Wednesday, so just watch some film, get better.”
Harden was then asked to share something that Clippers owner Steve Ballmer had said to the team during their home losing streak.
“Basically said the same thing I said, (he) thought he was gonna have to tear it down and build a new one,” Harden replied. “That tell you how much money he got… Just happy to get that off our chest. Now we can go out there and just play free and I think we did that in that second half.”
Considering Ballmer has a net worth of $122.3 billion, I suppose he could just build a new arena.
With this triumph over the Spurs, the Clippers got the monkey off their back and they’ll look to make it two wins in two at home when they take on the Philadelphia 76ers next on Friday at 10 PM ET. That game will also be Paul George’s first in Los Angeles following his departure this offseason and I expect him to get a frosty reception.
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