Houston Rockets superstar and NBA MVP James Harden is a divisive basketball player. It’s not just that Harden divides defenses and then conquers them like some modern day Caesar, it’s that he divides basketball fans with his (highly effective) style of play.
[Note: Harden fake flop choke video in tweet below, exposing a too common NBA technique meant to fool referees.]
You know the way Steph Curry supposedly ruins the game? (It’s a knock on his prolific three-point shooting that Curry has embraced.) Well that’s nothing compared to what Harden is doing to NBA basketball according to some fans, with his stretching what traveling means and — especially — his flopping. (“This style, what Harden does, is manipulating the game somehow,” says one basketball analyst.)
Sure Harden’s brand of basketball isn’t for everybody — he was recently called out for having the ugliest NBA playing style in the last 30 years. But it’s the flopping and faking that strikes at the integrity of the game. Harden is so divisive that many fans, like George Wrighster below, think that if you like Harden you should be ashamed. Look at Harden below, exposed for a blatant flop and choke fake.
If James Harden is your favorite player I’m judging you. #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/15K6TiFxhm
— George Wrighster III (@georgewrighster) April 21, 2019
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