The Los Angeles Clippers are notorious for their load management practices, but former MVP shooting guard James Harden refuses to follow that routine. Instead, unlike Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, Harden is committed to playing as many games as possible for the Clippers, and that includes back-to-back games.

“Even if we want to sit him out, if we have four games in five nights, he doesn’t want to do it,” Tyronn Lue said of Joey Linn.

Harden, 35, forced his way from the 76ers to the Clippers in 2023 in exchange for Marcus Morris Sr., Nicolas Batum, Kenyon Martin Jr., Robert Covington, KJ Martin and draft picks. It’s been a rocky tenure since then, but Harden has emerged as the hero of the season for rejecting the “load management” routine.

The Clippers are one of the teams most known for using this strategy, resting star players in consecutive games to preserve their bodies for the playoffs.

Of course, Kawhi Leonard is the champion of this trend, and he has found ways to miss games since his time with the Spurs. In four years, despite averaging 24.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game on 50.4% shooting, he has been rarely available and the Clippers have yet to make it past the conference finals.

Together, he and Paul George made a habit of skipping games for no other reason than a day off, and we saw how that affected the team as they repeatedly failed to win the title. Now that Paul George is gone, Kawhi Leonard is still sticking to his guns and he doesn’t seem to be budging from his stance.

Luckily for the Clippers, James Harden has vowed to play in every game he can, making him the only star consistently available to the franchise this season. Against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday, he helped his team to another important win, finishing the game with 23 points and 7 assists on 40.0% shooting.

With important role players like Norman Powell, Derrick Jones Jr., Ivica Zubac and Terance Mann, the Clippers have one of the tightest squads in the league and are versatile on both sides, even without Kawhi Leonard.

With head coach Tyronn Lue also running the locker room, the Clippers have lost all the tools they need to be a competitive team in the West. The only thing they are missing is a superstar willing and able to play for them on a consistent basis.

Harden is back to his All-NBA form, averaging 22.3 points, 8.8 assists and 6.9 rebounds per game this season and the Clippers are 14-9 (5th in the West). He sets an example for his teammates and gives the Clippers a chance to compete this season.

If Kawhi returns at just the right time, things could get interesting out West and the Clippers could end up surprising a lot of people. For now, all they can do is take it one game at a time and focus on what lies ahead. There is a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Intuit Dome tonight at 10:30 pm EST.

It’s their final game this week before their showdown against the Rockets at 9:00 p.m. EST. This will be their final home game before facing the Nuggets at Ball Arena on Sunday, December 13th at 9:00 PM EST.