Rockets GM Daryl Morey feels like he has let down his superstar
Rockets GM Daryl Morey sometimes thinks that he has let down his long-time superstar James Harden. He has done a great job holding the team away from exceeding the tax-line. Should he have gone over the limit in order to surround Harden with better quality players? For all these years that Harden has been a part of the Rockets and has been fighting to get to the NBA Finals and win a championship yes he deserves to play next to guys that will boost him to reach his goal.
This season seems to be the one for the Rockets who have two former MVPs in Harden and Westbrook, along with a bunch of specialists three-point shooters and capable defenders. The addition of Robert Covington is tremendous — we are talking about a great defender, a good three-point shooter shooting 35.7% from the perimeter. Furthermore, if we take into account that he has played in just fourteen games and look at his numbers: 12.8 points per game, career-high 7.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.1 steals and career-high 2.5 blocks — he is the defensive force that the Rockets need.
He outlined a picture of who Harden is: “I don’t think the media is super fair of him. But you know, people say that all the time,” Morey said on Anthony Pompliano’s Pomp podcast. “So you can take that for what it is, but I really don’t. And but I think part of it is he has a tight circle of people that he trusts and with those people who he knows have his best interests at heart and he’s had a history with them, he’s very gregarious, very open, very smart. Like just this great guy. And with everyone else, he’s not the opposite. He’s just reserved.”
Morey praised Harden’s basketball IQ and his work ethic, but took responsibility for not surrounding him with better weapons to go after a championship:
“He’s not someone who is going to be a big media guy or things like that. So, I think that hurts him a little bit, but I can tell you privately he’s like a basketball genius,” said Morey. “He’s a great quality human being. We’ve worked together for eight or nine years now and I couldn’t have a better partner to try and win a title with and in fact, most days I wake up saying, I’ve let them down because I haven’t got him the right players to win a title.”