Watching the present iteration of the Rockets is almost comical. Teams have decided that they are willing to let the Rockets’ role-players shoot wide open threes rather than let Harden do what he wants. Some of those role-players, like James Nunnally, what the heck is he doing out there, aren’t capable of making those teams pay. Other role-players, like James Ennis, are sometimes capable of making those teams pay. But even then, is a wide open three for Ennis more or less valuable than Harden taking a shot or getting fouled? Zach Lowe has probably already talked about this a bunch so I’m not going to bother figuring it out.
This is Ennis’ season high for threes made, with four. That’s not good enough. Not on a team like the Rockets. Not on a team that is probably going to shoot 100 triples in a game by the end of the season. His current percentages are good enough, in my opinion, that he could let it fly a bit more. Demand the ball from Harden (who won’t give it up, but you have to be forceful and grab it from him), and then just shoot it. Be aggressive. No one like a weak, timid player who isn’t willing to launch it 20 times from deep.
That’s the whole reason Harden is an MVP candidate. People admire his unwavering commitment to shooting.