There's only a handful of players that are max players and Harden is not one....I question whether Westbrook was worth that as well on that team ?? Transcending players that can carry a team deep into a playoff run and lead a franchise are max players.... Giving players like Harden, Love, Deron etc... max contracts is just stupid... Giving Harden max cash and considering him a max guy is similar to the Hawks giving Joe Johnson one 6 or 7 years ago... As a franchise you're going nowhere and more than likely will find yourself in that horrible middle of the pack spot that can kill a franchise for a decade plus...
Nice player, complimentary type of player who can be a major contributor to a championship caliber team, but cannot lead a team to a title...
The way the NBA is setup now, guys like Tim Hardaway, Glen Rice, Larry Johnson, Derrick Coleman, Latrell Sprewell, Jimmy Jackson etc... would all be max players...