James Harden proves he may be able to outrun Father Time.
Harden, who is in his 17th NBA season, scored 55 points in the Clippers’ 131-116 win over the Hornets on Saturday – the most in franchise history.
The 36-year-old made 10 three-pointers and had seven assists while shooting 17 of 26 from the field.
“I needed a win,” Harden told reporters after the game: according to The Athletic. “Right now it’s about winning. So I had to do what I had to do.”
Saturday’s performance marked Harden’s 25th 50-point game in the All-Star’s 11-time career, tying him for the third 50-point game in NBA history along with Kobe Bryant.
Before Harden broke the Clippers’ record, Charles Smith and Bob McAdoo had the most points in franchise history with 52.
Harden, who had 27 points from the first quarter alone, attributed his success Saturday to his ability to make good decisions when playing with his teammates.
“Making the right decision,” Harden said of his playing style. “That’s how I play every game. Some nights I’m really good at it. Some nights I’m not the best at it. And I try to be great every night. Yeah, it’s that simple.”
The game also marks Harden’s sixth 30-point game of the season – with the former MVP averaging 26.5 points per game, his most since the 2019-20 season where he scored an NBA-leading 34.3 points per night.
“He carried us offensively,” Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said. “I thought we did it the right way: we got the ball to the second team, and then he was able to make his plays, his one-on-one. And I thought we had confidence.”
“I thought James did a great job; they shot in the second half and just trusted the pass and trusted our guys to make the right play. Which we were able to do in the second half. So that was just really good to see.”
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