NBA Awards 2019: 3 reasons why James Harden should win the Most Valuable Player award

James Harden has had one more sensational year, but the Houston Rockets could not win it all as they exited the playoffs in the conference semifinals.

The defending MVP torched the opposition teams every time he stepped his foot on the court and it was a one-man show all season long.

He is one of the finalists (Giannis Antetokounmpo and Paul George) for the MVP award and would love to defend his MVP trophy.

In this article, let us take a look at three reasons why the 29-year-old should win the most coveted Most Valuable Player of the year award.

#3 Harden leads the Rockets to their seventh straight NBA playoffs

The Rockets made their seventh straight playoffs appearance

Last season, the Houston Rockets clinched the first seed in Western Conference with a 65-17 win-loss record and were heavily considered the favorites to win it all.

They even went 3-2 up against the Dubs but eventually lost the series in seven games. It is worth mentioning the fact that Chris Paul missed Game 6 and Game 7 due to a Hamstring injury.

While injuries are a part of this game and it is not fair to give excuses or undermine the Warriors' win, the reality is that the Rockets did not have their full roster. This season has been no different for the team as they battled injuries all throughout the season.

The Rockets entered this season with a depleted roster after losing Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute. Then, they had these injuries that troubled their players for the most part of the year.

No one really gave the Rockets a chance this year and not to forget, they got off to a horrible 9-11 start before Harden decided to take the matter into his own hands. Chris Paul only featured in 58 regular season games, Eric Gordon 68 and Clint Capela 67.

Despite all these injuries, Harden still led them to their seventh straight playoffs conference playing some lights out basketball.

#2 Harden's mind-boggling numbers

James Harden led the league in points per game (36.1)

Stat line: 36.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, 7.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.7 block per game on 44.2 % shooting

James Harden won the MVP award last season after leading the league in points per game (30.4) and helping the Houston Rockets to the Western Conference Finals.

While they under performed and fell in the Conference Semifinals this year to the defending champions, Golden State Warriors, James Harden once again did all he could to help this team.

He led the league for the second straight year in points per game (36.1), top 10 in assists per game (7.5) and second in steals per game (2.0). He posted numbers nobody has ever heard of before and had an individual season to remember for the ages.

In the future, we may never see another player post stats like these and even though the game of basketball is not just always about stats, this particular season from Harden definitely stands out.

#1 His 32 straight games with 30 or more points

James Harden scored 30 or more points in 32 straight games this season

James Harden left the NBA fans in awe this season with his offensive explosions on a nightly basis.

He looked like a completely different player on the offensive end and the league did not have any answer for 'The Beard' as he went on a stretch where he scored 30 or more points in 32 straight games this year.

The streak began in mid-December when he scored 50 points in the win against the Los Angeles Lakers and stayed alive for more than two months, eventually ending when he scored 28 points, falling two points shy of his 33rd straight game of 30 or more points, against the Atlanta Hawks.

The Rockets were (12-14) and without several key players due to injuries when Harden decided to take over and when the streak ended, their record was 35-25 which shows how crucial this stretch had been for them.

His 32 straight games of 30 or more points is the second longest streak in NBA history, behind Wilt Chamberlain's 65-game streak.