well that's literally the dumbest thing i've read in awhile. you're telling me had we shot 40% from 3 that we still would've lost? is that what you're saying?
the dumbest thing ive read is your posts turning your cheek to what really happened in that game. wtf do you think is going to happen when you take pts off the board that will get the lead up for 20 and completely shut off a teams rhythm while doing enough to boost the other. people following the narrative storyline, that disregard what leads up to it is whats really dumb. theres endless footage of the bs that happened last night. you want to ignore it thats all you. basketball is a game of missed shots. thats going to happen. what shouldn't ever be part of the game is ignorant blatant terrible officiating to impact the actual outcome i have no problem with two teams battling and the outcome is really who played better. whether its the team im rooting for or not. whats complete bs is when you're not even a real chance to see that happen over an entire game
i've literally stated in almost every single post of mine that the refs royally screwed us, so what exactly am i "ignoring"? this notion that we lost SOLELY bc of the refs is a lame defeatist attitude. last i checked it was a two possession game with a few mins left. we still had our shot even after playing 5 on 8. i'm trying to figure out why so many here want to completely bury the fact that we still put up one of the worst shooting performances in nba playoff history. the truth is we lost partially bc of the refs and partially because we couldn't shoot ourselves out of a wet paper bag. period.
a shot does not mean playing from behind and being forced into eventual desperation basketball. the window for mistakes is already close to 0 when playing GS. its the perfect storm being brewed. that wasn't a real shot in that 2nd half. that was hou being forced into a situation that they had little chance of getting out of. you realize by that time its extremely easy to guard hou bc time is their enemy. 7 with 1 minute left means nothing. GS was giving hou buckets to get to that "7 pts". it completely diminishes your point actually
I just think of the two 3 attempts where Harden got fouled in the first half and the made three in the second half on Klay Thompson that should have been a four point play that was called off. The refs took 10 points off the board last night with those 3 plays against the MVP of the league.
And the goal tend...and the wipe of of the 4 point play... and the Jordan bell moving screen... It was a lot. If you hit some more shots though...
@Clutch, guys, this right here is the defining image that will be stuck in my mind from this game. This is gut wrenching and frustrating. Chris Paul wants to help, knows he can make a difference but isn’t out there due to the injury.
I believe so too. And that’s more reason why I think Harden doesn’t get the officiating “respect” that has come with past MVPS. Curiously, I believe Harden has been singularly targeted to be officiated “differently” than the others this current year. And it’s unfortunate because in similar scenarios, forget 10 points and a few plays here or there, Harden should be going to the line14 to 20 times a game based on past precedents imho! Refereeing is not an easy job. I get it. But I really truly believe that with technology, basketball would be better served with some practices from other sports - e.g. challenge flag, more use of replay, etc. Let each coach get their respective challenge flags. To be used however selectively and sparingly. That reversed three plus a trip to the foul line btw I think would have been a momentum changer in D’Antoni’s words. Third quarter refs just swallowed their whistles and it’s a pity.
I read an article from yesterday by someone who lamented many things, including the officiating, but also complained about Harden basically flopping at the three point line to get calls. Which is not what happened in that game. But people see what they want to see. Especially Scott Foster?
Exactly. . . .that is the problem with Narratives d*mn hard for people to see past Just like the Harden not playing defense I have seen multiple people say . . . well Harden should not be tired because he doesn't play defense ON THIS VERY BOARD!!! I saw Harden Block Draymond and Durant I seen him pick Durant clean twice in a matter of minutes I see his outstanding help defense Defensively Harden was NAILS this series He made mistakes but who doesn't Rocket River
Don't get me started on the "James Harden no defense" narrative. Oh, wait....you already did! You are absolutely correct. Before at least one of the games in the WCF, you get Paul Pierce (not a member of Mensa, I shouldn't complain, but still) mentioning Harden and his lack of defense but good golly Miss Molly so great on the offensive end. Or something like that. And other ESPN/TNT chimps doing the same. Harden isn't Kawhi, and he might have a bad defensive game here or there---which the pundits run with. That one game will be The Proof. And it will keep feeding the narrative. Never mind when James steals the ball, blocks shots, whatever; he really wanted this series. Just some tired b.s.
If they hit ya with the 3-ball counter, tell them this: Despite sh*tting the bed on our shots, we still only lost by 9. That differential didn't reflect 7 free throw attempts and 3 points that should have been rewarded to us (or 9 free throws if you didn't believe that the last Harden non-call three pointer didn't qualify for continuation). It DID reflect two uncontested 3 point shots by the dubs that were wide open because of moving picks. Now, does that mean we would have made all our free throws? No. It does mean that even going 0-for-27 meant nothing relative to the missed calls that cannot be argued. If we made 60% of our FTs, that means we would have had 7 points more; and if they missed one of those uncontested shots, they would have had 3 points less. We win in that scenario. They are just deflecting because it takes the refs, 4 all stars, 7 games, and not facing CP3 the last two games to beat us.
