In the article, "This shot, coming off a step back or complex dribble move, has transformed the NBA, from the pick and roll to theories about offensive gravity in determining floor spacing." Sort of, its true about the spacing but the pick n roll is still very effective. Harden and Capela have the best pick n roll since stockton and malone and Capela and Harden are both better finishers at the rim. ****, Capela and Harden may be better than Stockton and Malone but some how they didn't notice that. I need some analytics on the stockton/malone pick n roll vs Harden/Capela, that would have been more useful salty salt lake town.
I like how the comments in the article are all against him... you'd think it'd be the other way around on a Jazz site.
Exactly. All those Jerry Sloan teams that would foul on every play and just wear the refs down until they eventually stopped calling them. THAT is ugly basketball, not watching Dr. Harden take his scalpel and methodically open up a defense.
He sounds very perceptive in talking about Curry's game, and very unperceptive about Harden's. I guess I'd say: One, Harden isn't doing anything differently in terms of forcing contact as umpteen other players have done from time immemorial. It isn't new at all. Harden is good at it, I'd say in part because he is built like a bull and has the core strength to keep control of his body despite contact. Two, and related, we won't see a bunch of copy-cats follow because future players won't be as good at it as Harden is, just like past player's have not been. The game won't change. Three, that's only part of his success. He didn't get a bunch of calls in Game 1. And, the unusual defense was not ceding a drive to avoid fouls but was meant to take away the 3 and funnel Harden into Gobert. He just found a different way to defeat that defensive strategy. I don't think there's anything 'bad for the game' there. Actually, I think it's beautiful to watch how he bends the defense. That is something else his supposed copycats won't be able to emulate.
Didn't read either, just know Jazz fans should be salty. Their team hasn't *gotten better since last season. In fact they have regressed. Such promise after last season. Just to suck. *Grammer
I thought that was the most telling part of the article... almost all of the commenters were roasting the guy
Is that what he’s saying? I wouldn’t call that undeniable... wouldn’t free throw rate disagree? Harden is AMAZING at drawing the whistle and forcing defenders into lose-lose positioning, but where I disconnect with you is when you say harden is better than anyone at getting refs to whistle in his favor. Harden’s volume helps a lot there, but per shot there are dudes better than harden at that.
I will feel the same way as this writer or the Jazz delusional fans if a one-man wrecking crew tells me what he's going to do, and yet I still couldn't stop him from doing what he said he is going to do. Jazz is not alone, it's what James-the-Beard-Harden does to every team in the league. CF please, show a little class and don't bash this writer and/or the Jazz delusional fans too much for being salty.
While that is true, I believe all the guys who draw fouls at a higher rate (per shot attempt) are bigs who play close to the basket where there will naturally be a lot more contact. Harden’s foul drawing rate, as a guard, is pretty unprecedented.
Idk, Jordan has done it as well. Same with Dwade, especially in the finals... I wouldn’t call it unprecedented either. I’d just say Harden is really freaking good at it, full stop.
I can attest that Salt Lake is not actually this salty, this guy is just the pinnacle of dumb. I've lived in Utah for 4 Rockets-Jazz playoff series now, and this is the one where Utah fans have given up and "dont want to talk about it". Ohhh yeahhh.
