I would like to first start this column by saying, by no means mean do I think James Harden is due for a regression nor do I think he will be worse in any way this season. Short answer: the team is better... The long answer is below.
Last year, James Harden finished the regular season scoring 27.4 points a game, which was good enough to be runner-up to Russell Westbrook for the NBA's scoring title despite leading the league for a majority of the season (and in total points).
Since entering the league in 2009, Harden has increased his scoring every year except for the 2013-14 season when he had a slight decline (in 2012-2013 scored 25.