Life isn’t fair. This idea that someone’s height is a matter of “fairness” is silly. Shorter guys have found ways to exploit big guys that doesn’t involve grabbing arms and flopping for fouls.
the point is that being average-sized for an nba player (HUGE for a regular human, btw) means that cheating is encouraged and/or applauded? yeah, i'm glad to be missing this point. i honestly have no idea what you're driving at. there are six feet and under leagues you can watch, i guess? how far does this argument go? if a person with one leg finds a way to bludgeon people with his or her prosthesis to the tune of 40ppg, should we all celebrate it? i also find it hilarious that a harden fan is demanding "fairness". really? i'm all for it. officiate harden like any other player so that he's gilbert arenas and houston is irrelevant.
I'm not a Harden fan... but I'd welcome him back home if he was paired with AD. If you can't see the inherent unfairness of having 7 foot men compete against 6 foot men on a game where the target is placed 10 feet above the ground, then I don't know what to say to you. I give you credit for witty retorts but I'm not sure if you are being intentionally obtuse, or you are simply trolling for community likes. We should change the rules. Harden isn't as skilled as some, but he doesn't deserve to be dismissed as an average player. If you don't like him I have no argument with your feeling... it's when people dismiss him as not an elite player that I'll take issue. But sure the NBA conspired to make this random dude a superstar.
He (Harden) just set the record for worst shooting percentage ever in a 50 Point game. And People are wondering why NBA Ratings are down...
The difference between Lou Williams drawing fouls and the esthetics of the way he plays the game compared to James Harden is vast. Lou is subtle and smooth and not the blatant flopping cheater that Harden is. The "smooth criminal" his nickname. The fakes to draw opponents into fouls and subtlety is nothing like Harden barreling into people, grabbing their arms and riding them piggyback hoping for fouls. As others have said he'd get busted in the mouth at the YMCA or any industrial league pulling that crap.
. What a rediculous argument. Allen Iverson, John Stockton, Spud Webb, Mugsy Bogues, Calvin Murphy and countless other players much shorter than poor James Harden never competed in the disgusting way he does. Since the game began.
Svi finally got to start a game. Sadly he didn't do well, but hopefully they give him another chance.
Svi can shoot the ball. I don't think thats deniable. In order to be a starter or get extended minutes, he needs to excel at something else beside shooting. He does have a few talents. He is athletic and has solid handlings. He can also score and definitely take it to the rim. But he needs to excel at one of these things. Otherwise he will always be the spot up shooter off the bench like Quin Cook or Daniels...not bad but not a regular.
I've never said life is fair... and I'm outraged how the Astros ruined Kershaw and Darvish's baseball lives by stealing signs and probably the World Series. My point is basketball has an inherently flawed design when it's the only major sport where a person of normal stature generally cannot compete simply by working hard at it. Obviously being genetically blessed is always one of the hallmarks of a good athlete... whether its fast twitch muscle fibers, unusual strength, superior vision, and size is almost always a factor. But in horse racing and gymnastics one has to be unusually small to succeed and basketball one must be unusually tall. Soccer, baseball, football, hockey... anyone of normal size can work hard and dream of playing those sports. Not basketball. Svi who is unusually tall (by average standards) and a decent player... was the best shooter in the entire NCAA on Kansas with the 2nd most difficult strength of schedule, and yet was still blacklisted because his wingspan was 6' 4". This is how crazy the game has become. You can be 6 foot 7... and still struggle to play. And the thing is that the scouts and analytics people are correct to be concerned. So far, his wingspan has been somewhat of an issue. This is how hard it is for a normal person to compete. At the rate they are going... people will soon need to have Ingram and Rudy Gay's wingspan just to be a starter. So this is the context in which I made my comment. I don't advocate the cheating... we SHOULD put penalties including ejection when someone is caught pulling the arm and drawing the fouls. But most 90% of the game, Harden is simply an excellent player.
that 90% is due in part to that other 10% is the point. the confidence that comes from knowing you can just bowl people over and go to the line when you need to. that you can just grab arms when you can't get by a guy. to hear his fans talk, you'd think he hits like 50% of those stepback threes, and everything else is a downstream consequence of that. that is simply not factual. you'd also think he just blows by guys for buckets on the regular. also not factual. the fouls set up his game. without them, he'd still score 25ppg, but it wouldn't be efficient, and he wouldn't be a superstar/mvp player. again, pretty much everyone can see this.
Again, then why doesn't everyone on a minimum contract hanging on to their position in the league do this if it's so easy. Is it because they choose not to make millions of dollars? Not justifying it... just saying it's easier said than done. And don't give me Harden the superstar because he had a 66% TS the last year he played in OKC when he was a sixth man.
i mean, everyone else who grabs arms and runs over retreating defenders gets called for it. i watch a lot of games--the refs know how to make those calls. they simply choose not to with harden. i'm CERTAIN they've been furnished with evidence from most teams of such behavior from harden, yet they don't look for it. why? i have no idea. that's not my concern. my concern is that it happens. it should affect your appraisal of his actual ability. much moreso than him being 2 inches shorter than lebron.
AD's teammate approves. I approve. Using his height at 6'5" to justify what he does is laughable and a crock.
So cheating in a basketball game... abhorrent. Aggravated assault... meh, cost of doing business. Good to know the standards here.
