James Harden put his new one-legged move to work during the Houston Rockets' second preseason game against the LA Clippers, saucing up Rodney McGruder in the right corner, only to get fouled on the attempt:
Another fading one-legged, three-pointer from the corner for James Harden. This one leading to 3 FTs. pic.twitter.com/vNULeLPmDL
— Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) October 4, 2019
McGruder, who makes his living as a tenacious defender, argued he didn't foul Harden in this aggressive contest:
“Nah, I've been seeing it. He tried it last game and he's been trying it all summer, so I'm not surprised at all,” said McGruder after the game. “I didn't foul him. He sold it though, he sold it. They gave him the call, so you just gotta go with it.”
Rodney McGruder is not surprised by James Harden using the 1-legged three-pointer in a game, but was adamant that he didn’t foul him on the shot and that James just sold the foul.#Clippers #Rockets pic.twitter.com/rvMckjjulk
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) October 4, 2019
Harden shot a whopping 20 free throws despite playing only 28 minutes on Thursday, putting up a 37-7-7 line despite a rather poor shooting night from the field, making only 8-of-22 from the floor and 4-of-14 from deep.
The Beard has been working extensively on his new shot, not only during the summer, but during practices and pregame warmups as well. It's only a matter of time before he starts using that in the game more regularly, not only as a means to get separation, but also to prompt these type of foul calls.
The shot in itself is as hot dog a move as anyone can pull off within the rules of NBA basketball, likely making defenders jump at the chance to contest it — therefore creating the chance for a shooting foul.
It's likely McGruder won't be the last to commit that foul when playing against Harden, as many have fallen victim to his call-selling antics before.
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