Houston Rockets star James Harden is on another torrid offensive stretch.
The seven-time All-Star scored 39 points - including 19 in the final quarter - during Monday's win over the New Orleans Pelicans. His 37.3 points per game so far in 2019-20 has surpassed Michael Jordan for the most by a player in the first 10 games of a season in the past 50 years.
| Season | Player | PPG |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | James Harden | 37.3 |
| 1988-89 | Michael Jordan | 36.9 |
| 1986-87 | Michael Jordan | 36.9 |
| 1970-71 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 34.4 |
(Source: ESPN)
"I don't really keep up with my scoring or not," Harden said after the 122-116 win, according to ESPN's Royce Young. "I just know in the fourth quarter, it's time to be aggressive or find certain things I can be aggressive at that can help my teammates get shots off and score as well."
Harden posted a career-high 36.1 points per contest last season to win his second straight NBA scoring title. He also had a 32-game streak of 30-plus points in 2018-19, which trailed only Wilt Chamberlain's 65-game run in 1961-62.
"I just go out there and play basketball," Harden said. "Try to be assertive as I can. ... Like, individually, I don't care. I've done a lot of good things, pretty good things individually, so the most important thing is winning and finding ways to get better."