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James Harden is taking his insane scoring proficiency to new heights

James Harden’s prolific scoring prowess is no secret. The Houston Rockets guard is the reigning two-time league scoring champion, after all.

But even after posting an incredible 36.1 points per game in 2018-19, becoming just the third player ever to eclipse 36 ppg for a full campaign, the one-time NBA Most Valuable Player has found an extra gear. Through 18 games, Harden is averaging 37.7 points, 1.6 ahead of last season’s rate.

In terms of total points, Harden is up to 679. He’s likely to cross the 700-point mark soon after halftime when Houston hosts the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night. If he averages 35.5 points or more over the Rockets’ next two contests, he will become just the fourth man ever to pour in at least 750 points over his team’s first 20 contests, according to Basketball Reference, joining Wilt Chamberlain (three times), Michael Jordan and Rick Barry.

To cross over the 600-point mark through 20 games — roughly one quarter of the season — is rare enough. According to Basketball Reference, just eight players other than Harden, who managed the feat two seasons ago as well, have done it over the past 30 years: Jordan, Orlando Woolridge, LeBron James, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, and Harden’s current teammate Russell Westbrook.

Harden’s torrid scoring pace while re-teaming with Westbrook, his former teammate with the Oklahoma City Thunder, has translated into team success in a way it hadn’t last season for Houston. The Rockets own the Western Conference’s fourth-best record at 12-6 and sit four games behind the first-place Los Angeles Lakers. One year ago, the team was languishing at 9-10 before eventually finding its footing to finish 53-29 as the West’s No. 4 seed.

More scoring milestones are all but assured to be in Harden’s near future. He needs 694 more points to reach 20,000 for his career, which at his current pace would happen just before the midway point of this season. (Photo credit: Associated Press)