Inside The Rockets

Rockets Ex Danuel House Praises James Harden

Danuel House knows how good the Houston Rockets were when led by James Harden.

Jeremy Brener

Nov 27, 2019; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) celebrates with forward Danuel House Jr. (4) after a play against the Miami Heat during the second quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Nov 27, 2019; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) celebrates with forward Danuel House Jr. (4) after a play against the Miami Heat during the second quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
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The Houston Rockets were one of the best franchises throughout the 2010's thanks to James Harden.

Harden's teammate from 2018-20 in Houston, Danuel House Jr., spoke about his time with the team on a recent episode of the Ur.Perspectives Podcast.

“People talk about the Rockets and James Harden, and they criticize us for not getting it done in the playoffs," House said. "But they don’t realize how hard it was. Harden had three defenders on him every night. Name another player who had to deal with that on a regular basis. Teams would throw everything at him—double teams, triple teams, even weird defenses like having a guy stand behind him to stop the step-back. It was crazy. But despite all that, he still got his numbers. People want to blame him for not winning, but it wasn’t just on him.”

Harden may not have won a championship during his time with the Rockets, but there is no denying that the team forced its opponents to change its game plans when coming to Houston.

In a world where winning is everything, Harden will always be criticized for never finishing one out and getting a championship with the Rockets. However, his impact should still be celebrated years and decades after his career comes to an end.

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Jeremy Brener

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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