NBA 18-19: Unpopular Opinion; James Harden Will Not Win The MVP

James Harden doesn't need the press or paparazzi to show off what he's doing; his moves on the court do all the talking. This applies to every aspect of his life. Whether it comes to questions about life and family or about what he's planning to do on the court in the next game, he is very reserved with his words and lets his game do the talking. Many may not agree with this, but he has had a few record-breaking months in the recent past, which no one can even deny.

Just in terms of stats, he has scored well over 400 points, with over 90 assists, and over 60 rebounds in an average span of any 10 games. These kinds of numbers have been breaking NBA records all season. However, these stats aren't everything a player needs to have to become MVP.

Now, this isn't based on the viral memes that have been mocking his step back jump shot, and this surely isn't based on the conspiracy theories the internet has been coming up with, but here are a few unpopular reasons we believe that James Harden will not be NBA MVP 2018-19.

#1 Number of triple-doubles (read as one-man show)

James Harden is a leader in the MVP race alongside players like Luca Doncic and Giannis

James Harden has been player of the week many times in the Western Conference. During the months of December and January he was the gift that kept on giving in terms of the points he made. Throughout this time frame, he was also able to climb into the ranks of the all-time greats with some of his records matching up with those of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.

However as beautiful as those stats may seem, basketball remains a team game. No number of triple-doubles would matter without the team that makes those possible. And of late, James only seems interested in putting the ball up, not passing it around.

As of Jan 19, 2019, only 53 of his 463 shots have been assisted. While this may not seem like a low number for a point guard, in comparison, Steph Curry has 305 shots, of which 201 were assisted and Kevin Durant had 405 shots, with 204 assisted. The closest person to Harden-like numbers is another person accused of playing it alone; LeBron James who shot 104 assisted shots out of a total of 340.

#2 Shooting off the dribble

James Harden has been the light guiding the shift into this new and improved version of the NBA

James Harden works extremely hard. From training his body and mind, to the smaller things like finding the right step in the game, he has it all down, through the hours of practice he puts in each and every day. From time in the weight room to drill sessions, to one on one game time, he has been putting in the work.

However, all the work off the court has not been able to teach him better gameplay. Harden may be the most consistent top scorer for the NBA this season, but his shooting percentage is nowhere close to what it should be.

He currently is only scoring more points because he shooting more. His shooting percentage is 34.6%. In comparison, other players like LeBron James are at 55.5% and Steph Curry is at 47.7%. This also means he is missing more, and that is not the mark of any good offensive player.

#3 Keeping it on the down low on defense

James Harden lacking on his defensive skills against the king of the court LeBron James

The Houston Rockets are a talented bunch of players. They have been extremely successful in learning how to play with one another and have no doubt about taking their place in the playoffs. They may not be star-studded at present, but they are putting in the time to make it work. All this while dealing constant team injuries and issues in a difficult Western Conference that picks only the best.

While Harden has given some great performances this season, his obvious lack of effort was instrumental in the consecutive losses to the Utah Jazz and the Dallas Mavericks. Unfortunately for him, the bad currently outweighs the good.

Now there is scope for the team to climb higher on the table, but there are a few factors holding them back and one is the lack of defense skills from James Harden.

While he is a magical player on the offensive end, he just doesn't seem to have the energy it takes to come back and put up a strong defense. While this may just seem to be complacency for many, his efforts off the court do not add up to this performance on the court, so this has to be burnout.