The Unfair Treatment of James Harden
The latest referee blunder in the NBA, as usual comes at the cost of the Houston Rockets and James Harden.
James Harden; one of the most offensively gifted players in the history of basketball and possibly the most complete offensive player in NBA history. His skillset covers everything from handles, to passes, to shooting, to dunking and laying in through contact. He's the most unstoppable player in the league, and his numbers back that up. His averages and numbers have not been seen since the days of Michael Jordan in the 90s, or even further back with Wilt Chamberlain in the 70s.
But with Harden's ball dominant style of play, and the way no one can do anything except foul him, comes heavy criticism and at most times: unfair and biased officiating and judging. James Harden seems to be targeted by the players and referees in every game. Outside the matches, he's being denied his dues by the commission.
The latest referee mistake of them literally not counting his basket after he made it, and refusing to review the call or oblige to the new legal coach's challenge to see the replays, and thus costing the Rockets the game down the line is the latest and biggest example of how unfair the team and Harden are being treated by the league. To then reject all appeals and complaints regarding the obvious blunder on their parts is bewildering.
The peak of the Harden hate comes at 2 specific occasions, and perhaps the 2 biggest stages in basketball. One is in the playoffs against the Golden State Warriors specifically. Two is when it comes to MVP voting.
The most notorious incident with the Houston Rockets came against the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals in 2018, the same year where they were locked to win the championship, but the referees had something else to say. The Warriors got away with so many fouls that many fans consider that they were thrown a lifeline from the referees to make sure that "the NBA's favorite team" and "golden boy" continue winning. The most obscene incident came when Kevin Durant was very evidently stepping OVER THE LINE and grabbed the ball and threw it back in, and the referees somehow someway didn't see it.
James Harden; one of the most offensively gifted players in the history of basketball and possibly the most complete offensive player in NBA history. His skillset covers everything from handles, to passes, to shooting, to dunking and laying in through contact. He's the most unstoppable player in the league, and his numbers back that up. His averages and numbers have not been seen since the days of Michael Jordan in the 90s, or even further back with Wilt Chamberlain in the 70s.
But with Harden's ball dominant style of play, and the way no one can do anything except foul him, comes heavy criticism and at most times: unfair and biased officiating and judging. James Harden seems to be targeted by the players and referees in every game. Outside the matches, he's being denied his dues by the commission.
The latest referee mistake of them literally not counting his basket after he made it, and refusing to review the call or oblige to the new legal coach's challenge to see the replays, and thus costing the Rockets the game down the line is the latest and biggest example of how unfair the team and Harden are being treated by the league. To then reject all appeals and complaints regarding the obvious blunder on their parts is bewildering.
The peak of the Harden hate comes at 2 specific occasions, and perhaps the 2 biggest stages in basketball. One is in the playoffs against the Golden State Warriors specifically. Two is when it comes to MVP voting.
The most notorious incident with the Houston Rockets came against the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals in 2018, the same year where they were locked to win the championship, but the referees had something else to say. The Warriors got away with so many fouls that many fans consider that they were thrown a lifeline from the referees to make sure that "the NBA's favorite team" and "golden boy" continue winning. The most obscene incident came when Kevin Durant was very evidently stepping OVER THE LINE and grabbed the ball and threw it back in, and the referees somehow someway didn't see it.
The Warriors ended up winning the series and advancing and eventually winning the NBA finals. That series is regarded as one of the most controversial series' of all time.
The second occasion(s) where Harden wasn't treated fairly is in each year's MVP awards. Harden has finished in the top 2 of the last 5 years MVP votes. It is acceptable if he doesn't win them all. It is unacceptable that he lost out on the last one.
Harden was doing insane things on the court and many Hall of Famers and analysts were labeling it as the greatest thing they have ever seen. Harden created history that season with his numbers, ranking, and style of play. He carried his team from the 12th overall ranking in the west, all the way to the 2nd place. He created the longest streak in history with 32 consecutive games scoring 30+ points. He was dubbed as "unguardable" because literally no one knew how to deal with him or his step-back three. He was knocking down jump shots, getting to the rim, settings assists, and getting to the foul line at will. He was so good that the more points he scored, it was being criticized as abusing the game and he was getting bad publicity for it. Imagine getting attacked for being too good.
Harden led the league in scoring averaging 36.1 points per game. Something that hasn't happened since Michael Jordan. He was second in assists. He was second in steals. He was in the top 2 of all the major statistical categories, except rebounding, but being a guard he doesn't rebound and it's not his job. With all this; Giannis beat him for the MVP award because the media liked his story better, and because everyone hated Harden for what he was doing to the opposition.
Harden does not receive any credit and does not get the respect he deserves. He is constantly mistreated by players, fans, referees, and the commission. Why? Literally for being too good and "unguardable". If Harden was getting his calls, he would have won 5 MVP awards, instead of one. He would also have one or two championships, instead of zero.
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