“He’s not like Russell Westbrook who’s been absolutely demolishing his team all year” - Tim Bontemps believes former All-NBA player doesn’t stink, but he’s just a complimentary piece now

Tim Bontemps, the Washington Post's national NBA writer, has come to the defense of a former All-NBA player.

Talk of James Harden's dip in form while he was on the Brooklyn Nets has followed him to the Philadelphia 76ers. The 32-year-old has been almost non-existent in the playoffs, putting up bare minimum performances for the supposedly 'elite' player that he is advertised as.

His time with the 76ers has been somewhat anti-climatic after the attention his trade received. He averaged 21.5 points per game in the regular season while shooting 40.5% from the field, the second worst percentage of his career.

From three-point range, the 10-time All-Star shot for 32.6%, the lowest of his career. He has found it difficult to have a noticeable impact on the 76ers.

Tim Bontemps defended the run of poor performances from Harden as he's still a valuable contributor.

Bontemps compared Harden's struggles to the way Russell Westbrook demolished the LA Lakers. He believes Harden has lost a step, but is still an elite playmaker, stating:

"It's not that he stinks, that's the thing. It's a more complicated thing than that. He's not really like Russell Westbrook, who was just absolutely demolishing his team all year. I mean, you're talking about a guy who's still an elite playmaker."

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Tim Bontemps believes James Harden is more of a complimentary player now as opposed to being a leader

James Harden against the Miami Heat.

James Harden, the supposed second-best player on the Philadelphia 76ers, has now been surpassed by Tyrese Maxey. Tim Bontemps, who insists the 2017 assist leader is still valuable, described him as a complimentary player.

Maxey, who is in his sophomore season with the 76ers, has been nothing short of inspirational.

The youngster has been a good supporting piece for Joel Embiid and has been greatly applauded for it. But shockingly, Maxey has also stepped up in the big man's absence.

Harden was expected to take the reins with Embiid out due to injuries to his eye and thumb. However, the three-time scoring champion has failed to step up and continues to play a more subtle role.

Having started all nine games in the playoffs for the 76ers, Harden has averaged 18.6 points per game, his lowest over the past nine seasons.

Tim Bontemps described him as a complimentary player whose role strictly hinges upon assisting his teammates. While he can help put up 15 - 25 points per game, he's not one to consistently take over games.