Seems like the refs have been ramping up the #Silveragenda against Harden recently - every game there has been at least one or two disgraceful offensive fouls called on him that no other player in the NBA would get called for. Any other dominant player in nba history gets reffed in their favour, but Harden gets fouled so much that the refs blatantly misapply the rules to slow him down, just to pacify other teams' complaints that he gets too many FTs. Tonights offensive foul on James after Hollis-Jefferson fouled him all the way down the floor should be a fineable offense for the officials, but that will never happen.
It's boring. You gotta call some stuff to make the game a real game, but I'm with you. Offensive fouls (even against our opponents) are boring AF for the most part. I'm a big fan of basketball. Let's watch it being played, refs! That whole taking away shots made when players weren't 'in a shooting motion yet' bullshit is boring. Did the NBA really think taking away that exciting of a play would improve the show? Good god no. No. It's boring. AND ONE! Nope.. two free throws. That's just what we need as fans... more free throws. AND1's > 2 Free Throws Time to change it back, NBA. Players will adjust.
shaq got hammered true, but he was also one of the very few players in the modern era (giannis is another) given carte blanche to barrel his way thru defenders without impunity
He committed just as many offensive fouls and got away with them. He would literally lower his shoulder and barrel into you at times.
Agreed. But this season is something else entirely. You can make an actual case - without being ridiculed (if the person is intelligent and willing to listen) - that the league is actively looking to call offensive fouls on Harden. There's been too many instances to count where I am absolutely irate watching a game and left speechless at calls against him.
Offensive foul calls is directly responsible for the decline of the rim protector. Why risk you big getting cheap fouls When you can have your 6 footer slide under someone and flop They get that call probably 50 to 60% of the time Now you can play small ball Rocket River
Take your cocktail of heart failure and hypertension meds like I do. It's a chore of timing and remembering but you will be healthier as a Rocket fan.
I am for the increase in offensive fouls in total, but the league really needs to look at curbing two types of offensive fouls. 1. Fouls after the ball has already been passed. If a guy passes the ball to a teammate rather than shoots, there should be a higher threshold for calling an offensive foul there. The player really needs to be out of control and barreling into the defender like a bowling ball thru bowling pins. Instead, they get called just the same as when a player shoots. 2. Fouls with the player already on his way down. If the player has jumped, released the ball, and is on a downward trajectory already, then the defender probably had plenty of time to slide underneath him to try to draw the charge. Those plays are cheap defense and should not be rewarded. This one happened to James last night in the fourth and was total bush league.
This was obvious in the first couple of games of the season. It cooled for a bit but it's still going. NBA gonna NBA. It is so infuriating to be a fan of this sport and watch fans, "analysts", and league officials try to twist logic depending on the player.
It reminds me of handicapping in horse races. Better horses were weighed down more to give them a disadvantage against slower horses. I guess that way Seabiscuit wouldn't crush the competition every time. Sometimes it feels like the refs have their way of handicapping Harden.
Yes! It wasn't broken and they "fixed it". There was nothing wrong with continuation. It just brought in more judgement calls as to whether the foul was on the gather or not. They should have left that alone.
My biggest issue is with the charges taken on Harden's floaters. Technically, yes, the defender is often in a set position outside the restricted zone. However, there is absolutely ZERO attempt by the defenders to influence Harden's shot whatsoever. Literally the entire point is to get set while he's in the air, and wait for the collision when he lands. It's dangerous, it's not actual defense, and I don't think it's being called correctly. https://videorulebook.nba.com/archive/defensive-foul-defender-undercuts-airborne-shooter/ Not a total apples-to-apples comparison as this is a 3 point attempt, but you can see here that the shooter took a 3, jumps a few feet forward, and lands on the defender's foot. The defender is undercutting an airborne shooter (just as Harden is an airborne shooter as he attempts a floater), and this is supposed to be enforced even if the shooter is coming forward. It gets a little trickier with the floater because the defender is in a set position (sometimes) and Harden is moving further forward while airborne, but the same concepts should be applied when officiating, imo.