NBA 2018-19: Giannis Antetokounmpo vs James Harden - Who has had the better season so far?

The ongoing 2018-19 NBA regular season has been something out of the ordinary. While some things remained unchanged, many novel patterns emerged that are sure to run the scheme of all things NBA for the foreseeable future.

One of the pleasant uprisings on the talent front has been that of the 24-year-old Giannis Antetokounmpo. From being picked first in the All-Star game last season to being named the captain of the East's All-Star squad this year around, the Greek Freak has come a long way without a doubt.

On the other hand, James Harden has been putting together a show of resilience of his own, ever since the Rockets were grazing the bottom of the West standings. He has been on a rampage en route to a legit back-to-back MVP bid.

In this piece, we try and compare the 2018-19 regular season performances of the aforementioned megastars and how they stack up against each other in the MVP race.

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#1 Statistical Comparison

Giannis and Harden are both averaging career-high numbers

This is the fourth straight season that the Beard is averaging more than 29 points per game, setting another insurmountable career-high for himself with every passing game. In the 36 games he has started for the Rockets this season so far, Harden is scoring at an astronomical average of almost 36 points a game, playing an average 37 minutes per game as well.

Giannis Antetokounmpo --------------------- James Harden

On the other hand, Antetokounmpo is one of the very few forwards in the league who are averaging a solid double-double on the season and doing so consistently and efficiently. He has been recording career-high numbers in points, rebounds, assists and FG%, with 11 games remaining still in the Bucks regular season.

Harden took care of business on the defensive end of the floor - something he has been so heavily critiqued for in the past - as he averages a career-best 2.2 steals per game this year.

The disparity in the scoring averages of the two players is something that can't be ignored at any cost. Although Giannis pulls down 12+ rebounds a game, averaging nearly 36 points across 66 games in the season would still overshadow any such accomplishment.

#2 The impact they have had on their respective teams

Their mental toughness knows no bounds.

At one point in the regular season, the Rockets were 11th in the West, plagued by injuries and hurdles aplenty. Harden went berserk when his franchise needed him to. He went on a blazing 30-point streak for 32 straight games and ball-hogged (as the critics refer to it) his team to within striking distance of the Conference-leading Warriors. The Rockets are currently 3rd on the West leaderboard, just 3.5 games behind Golden State.

It's true that the Bucks struggle whenever Giannis doesn't put up his best numbers. The reliability of this surging Milwaukee squad on the 24-year-old is based on thin ice. We can beg to differ with the notion of Milwaukee making it this far and this big, had Giannis not been as fit and as aggressive as he was.

To belittle one's contribution to his team in front of the other would be nothing short of a cardinal sin.

#3 Who is having a better season overall?

This was Harden's 7th All-Star appearance.

Giannis' dominance on the boards and his presence in the paint is feared league-wide. Harden's ability to score at will from the perimeter and/or at the rim has proven to be unstoppable for even some of the best defenses in the league.

To put things into perspective, if you won the regular season MVP last year averaging 30.4 ppg and you come in next year putting up 35.9 ppg (other emphatic aspects ignored), there really shouldn't be much argument over if you deserve the trophy again or not.

No doubt Giannis is having the best basketball season of his career, but Harden's 2018-19 season numbers have been gargantuan, to say the least.

Had the Rockets been going through smooth from the beginning, maybe James wouldn't have had to awaken the beast in the first place. However, the Rockets got better as the season progressed, and the Bucks were always top of the key, thereby resulting in two megastars made of a contrasting set of cogs.