Houston Rockets: 4 false narratives about the team

Harden criticism of officiating

Harden also has drawn criticism for being vocal about how the officiating has been inconsistent with him. Granted, it’s true that he’s tough to officiate against because he has mastered the ability to bait officials and draw contact, but the reality is he’s not the only one doing that. It’s true that there are calls that don’t go in his favor that would go in favor of say, Giannis Antetokounmpo, especially in the playoffs.

What may come as a surprise to many is the fact that Giannis had more free throws than Harden in each round of the playoffs. In the opening round against the Detroit Pistons, Giannis had 43 free throw attempts, despite only playing in 4 games. Harden had 37 free throw attempts on the series against the Utah Jazz, despite playing in 5 games.

The second round of the playoffs continued this trend, as Giannis had 65 free throw attempts against the Boston Celtics, which was a 5 game series, whereas Harden had 61 free throw attempts in a 6 game series against the Golden State Warriors.

So to recap, Harden played in two longer playoff series’ than Giannis, yet still had less free throw attempts in each round. So why is it wrong for Harden to point that out? And why aren’t people calling Giannis a flopper considering that’s the label Harden has, yet Giannis went to the line more than Harden in the playoffs?

Next: More "Complaints" from Harden?