harden's numbers from last year make it clear that, as far as efficiency goes, he was the best offensive SG in basketball (along with manu). the question was if increased usage as a first option would change his ridiculous effectiveness. thus far, the opposite has seemed true.

when you watch him play, it's totally different from guys like AI or westbrook or kobe, who often score/scored on shots with a high degree of difficulty. harden takes layups, open threes and FTs. when he gets by the first defender, harden refuses to take that 14-footer like so many scorers do. he looks to get closer to the basket or passes out to the perimeter.

watching him play is seeing a personification of everything that shot-charts tell us about how an offensive player is supposed to behave. it's weird and futuristic, even though his game is almost old-mannish. unless he stops being able to make threes or get to the foul line, he's going to continue to put up great numbers (if not 39 a game).

the good thing about morey is that he's keenly aware of what makes harden so spectacular on offense, and will put him in situations to succeed more frequently than OKC ever did.