Milwaukee Bucks: Ranking NBA’s dominant duos in 2019-20 season
By Ryan Dean
4th Place: Russell Westbrook and James Harden
James Harden and Russell Westbrook are still a rather new duo but as former MVPs, both have made major waves in their respective careers.
I have Harden and Westbrook in my fourth position in this list. These two started their careers both playing on the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2009 until 2012, before Harden was traded to the Rockets in Houston. Now, they once again find themselves sharing the same court, although this time that home court is 445 miles south.
At the start of the season, the pairing of Harden and Westbrook was considered one of the biggest question marks in the NBA. Many people were curious to see how they would play together now that they have both come into their own as dominant scorers and primary ball-handlers. Harden had just come off a record-breaking scoring season averaging 36.2 points per game and Westbrook, once again, averaged a triple-double. I think many people, including myself, were curious to see who would dominate the point guard role.
As we find ourselves a little over halfway through the current season I think it is fair to say that this dominant pairing has been fun to watch. The Rockets currently find themselves sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference. Harden is yet again having an incredible scoring season and Westbrook is scoring 26 points per game too, his highest total since 2016 when he averaged a triple-double.
Overall, Harden and Westbrook make for an interesting watch if you really enjoy isolation scoring and hardcore dunks. It will be interesting to see how the Rockets will fare for the rest of the season without their powerful big man Clint Capela.
Both Harden and Westbrook will be playing on Team LeBron in the All-Star Game.