Masterful media manipulation by TNT. All this talk started when they did a slo-mo closeup on Harden's feet during the stepback 3 to "showcase his footwork." Then the "accidental" tweet by Kerr. PLEASE. Harden is making the media uncomfortable. They desperately want GS/Cleve rematch. We are gonna have to beat the teams, the refs, and the media. And dammit, we might just be good enough to do it!
Thanks I’m glad coach Nick decided to do a video on this. I always like his bbalbreakdown videos. Now Kerr should stop whining.
Isn't Steph Curry the guy that brought about the step back recently with his step back threes???? I mean am I in the twilight zone?? Kerr's own player is the one that popularized this move the last few years? Or am i missing something?
Oh man thats so great. I had a neverending discussion about it yesterday with someone that was confident its a traveling move and wouldnt back down. I cant wait to rub it to his face.
Maybe I'm missing something, but Harden has typically released the ball before his feet hit the hardwood. He doesn't have possession of the ball, as it is making its merry basket to the basket. How is it a travel if he doesn't have possession?
It is not a travel. Most fans are just too dumb to understand what a gather step is or feel like it or the 2 steps should only apply to layups as opposed to a jumper.
This is what I expected. Most players perform the step back as a single lunge as they're gathering the ball. What makes Harden's side shuffle / step back look a bit awkward is that he does a tiny hop to his right foot just a split second before the gather, then follows up with the big lunge to his other foot. It's legal, but only by a split second, and that's the beauty of it.
I wouldn't give Coach Nick too much credit. He has been pointing out Harden's (and LeBron's, for that matter) "travel, but not travel" stepback since the beginning of this season, and low key suggested that it was an illegal move all along. Go back and rewatch his recent videos, and you'll notice there are a lot of subtle jabs at Harden, including resting during defense, etc.
Forget Trump and the FBI. I want to know whether Harden negotiates his moves backstage with league officials. We can all see him working the refs in games. I can't believe he doesn't check with them, at least indirectly, before bringing out a move like the stepback. Harden may finally be getting the respect he's due as a player. But he remains highly underrated as a lawyer.