Broadcaster says James Harden is cheating the game

Cool. Please share links, if anyone has them!

 

Wait this was on national tv? I live in SoCal so I have to watch on the local channel.

 

NBATV with Clippers (dumbass) commentators

 

Starts @ 17:40: Sarah Spain, Michael Smith, Frank Isola, Ramona Shelburne


Starts @ 4:49: Stephen Jackson and Colin Cowherd


Rachel Nichols, Tracy Mcgrady, Brian Windhorst

 

The clippers had such a great color commentator sitting next to Lawler last season that i loved to watch the local broadcast when the rockets would come in to LA and play against them. No idea why they got rid of them. I like Lawler a lot but I think he's retiring this season. They also had Corey Magette who wasn't to bad himself so not sure what they're doing over there.

 

I literally openly chuckled like 10x today at this.

Harden has gotten so good he’s literally breaking the mental ankles of color commentators.

 

James has handled this brilliantly. By putting the ball in the hole now the media is caught trying to distance themselves from the narrative they created and endorsed. See it would be the easiest thing if James lost his cool and said something inflammatory but I personally am proud of the leadership and class he has shown. They are looking for any excuse to justify supporting Giannis over James. Like we give MVP to the team with the Top record MJ should have never won in 88 and 91 if that's the case

 

The commentators are basically supporting Harden with their words - although it's still a lot of "drawing fouls is his best skill" type stuff - but the footage chosen for the segment is intended to back up McLean's complaint. Harden shooting free throws, and a few plays in which he seems to be hooking defenders or falling down to draw fouls, which will trigger haters big time.

 

Defenders reach in first thats why they get hooked

Defenders bump/block hardens movement first

 

the starters fired back at clippers commentator

 

You're the man, my friend! Thanks for posting these!

Sarah Spain from Around the Horn was straight Fire!! "I get two steps? Fine! I'll take em backwards! Figure out a way to guard that!!"

 

M....entally
O....btuse
R....eject
O....ften
N....imrod-like

 

True, but the general take of the segment isn't "Clippers broadcaster rants about Harden despite Harden playing perfect game", which is why everyone got upset. It's more like "Is Clippers broadcaster actually totally right about Harden's FT-mongering ways?" And the commentators all basically come down to sort of compromise on it, like "Yeah, he's totally taking zillions of FT's, but Shaq dunked on everyone and people complained about that, too, game changes over time or something?". It's still a slanted, anti-Harden discussion, but they're trying to be subtle about it.

 

Would make sweet gentle love to Sarah just based on those comments.

But I am surprised the media came to defend Harden in this case.

Summary: yes it's isoball, but who cares if they are winning? If you don't like watching him play, don't.

 

Yes I can. They don't like that he draws fouls and at times he does embellish. They number of free throws and the complaints from players who are frustrated feeling he is initiating the content - how he puts his arm under as he gathers to draw the fouls at time. Yes, I can see how some people might see that as cheating the game. To me it's a compliment that he is frustrating players and fans so much they have to make that accusation. Revolutionaries are often controversial. People complained about Lebron traveling with his "crab dribble". People complained about Jordan getting all the calls from refs and that it was unfair.

I certainly understand why people say it, and it makes me smile.

 

Ft.mongering ways? Fouls are fouls you dont want him to take fts then dont foul him

He plays and is called no different than lou williams

 

With all due respect, Harden's playing basketball and within the rules, pure and simple. What the brainless fool was babbling made no sense to the guy doing the Clippers broadcast with him, much less anyone else watching with a functioning brain. The whining from some quarters, either in the media or here and there in the league, is driven purely from jealousy and frustration, in my humble opinion. Houston, never respected after the demise of the Twin Towers in the '80's, for no other reason than it isn't New York, Boston, Chicago, LA, or the current darling of the media, Oakland, is the home of the best player in the Association and they just can't stand it. What James is doing is what everyone else attempts to do, or wishes they could do, or actually does themselves. They just aren't nearly as good as he is at doing it.

It's basketball and within the rules. The rest is pure nonsense, in my opinion.

 

That's like saying Lebron James is manipulating because he can run faster than most NBA players at his height and uses that to his advantage or Nowitzki as 7 footer can shoot 3 pointers which he shouldn't do because at his height he should only play inside the paint. This commentary proves that people just hate on Harden for whatever reasons they can find.

I am glad ESPN picked up on this and criticized his comments.

 

I totally get it. And as a Rockets fan it annoys me. But as a basketball fan, I see why people do it, and honestly, it's a right of trial for anyone who is having such an impact on the game. Jordan went through the same thing, as did Kobe, as did Lebron. That's why I smile. Because if Harden wasn't having the impact he is having, people wouldn't rip on him. The fact he gets so much critique is in and of itself a sign of his greatness.

The people who rip on him today will be the people who talk about how great he was, they will say, "Oh this new guy on the block is no James Harden"

That's just how it goes. And frankly, in an ironic way, we should be thanking Don Maclean or whatever the guys name is - he just made all the media jump to Harden's defense and actually made harden more likeable. I mean, it was hilarious, Mclean was praising Harden a bit in the first half, but with the team down 30 he lost it and let his frustration show. And it was ridiculous how silly it was. So silly that like I said, he actually made people defend Harden and a more likeable figure. He may have just helped Harden win the MVP.


Now, all he has to do is win a championship and everyone will shut up.

 

Harden has always been adding stuff to
His game look at this no 6 year old clip of harden learning many moves which he uses in games today