BAHRAM MARK SOBHANI - AP

4 months ago: Oklahoma City rookie guard James Harden dunks the ball over San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili of Argentina during the third quarter of an NBA basketball game at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/ Bahram Mark Sobhani)

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James Harden is 12 games into his rookie NBA season with the Oklahoma City Thunder.  In his first 11 games, Harden contributed decent numbers coming off of the bench.  Harden is averaging 18 minutes per game and 7.3 ppg.  Currently leading the team in 3-pt%, Harden has been a boost off the bench for the young and energetic Thunder.  In last nights game, Harden came off the pine to go 6-7 from behind the arc, scoring 24 points in 31 minutes against the Magic in a losing effort.  It seems OKC needs to give more minutes to Harden, who as we all know, can rack up assists, steals, and points as quickly as Pendergraph picked up fouls in his junior year.

Speaking of Jeff Pendergraph, he is still recovering from hip surgery stemming back to September.  He is expected to miss a considerable amount of his rookie season in the NBA, but if anyone can bounce back from adversity, its Pendergraph.  He will most definitely be the hardest working player on the court once healthy, and may contribute key minutes for the 9-4 Blazers, while Greg Oden takes a break.