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The 2020-21 season has started with a change in the refereeing section as one of its main protagonists. Over the last few seasons it had become customary to see attackers introduce into their technical repertoire movements that blatantly sought to provoke the defender’s foul. Therefore, this course will not whistle fouls in which the attacker makes unnatural movements. ‘No-basketball’ is the nickname they use. Faced with such regulation, the first victims have not been slow to appear and, according to Steve Nash, James Harden he is the oldest of them. “It has become the target of the new norm.”
In the game the Nets lost against the Hornets yesterday, Harden went to the free throw line only once. Something unusual for a player who has dominated this stat with an iron fist for years. From 2014 until last season, the point guard has been the player with the most free throws per game. This year, he only registers nine total attempts in three games. His career average is 8.7.
Just yesterday, a couple of penetrations by the player ended with defensive actions that should have been marked as a violation. But they weren’t, and Harden ended up getting frustrated and committing two consecutive offensive fouls in the fourth quarter. His technician couldn’t help being frustrated. “I understand, there is a difficult line to draw, but some of these actions are still faults. He is going to continue attacking the rim as always because most of the time they are still fouls.
Harden has always been singled out for his cunning in seeking contact, sometimes excessively. But the truth is that he has a special talent for keeping his game natural while prompting the whistle. Either going up the shot of three when they defend him with low hands and contacts on the forearm or on hooks near the rim. I’m not the type to complain. I ask the referees to whistle what they see. A foul is a foul, no matter what league you play in. But it is much bigger than that. I’m not going to stop playing basketball, but I’ll get better, obviously.
Any regulation introduced goes through an adaptation stage. At its root, the new rule has every reason for being in the world, as certain offensive actions border on the absurd and were beginning to be a real problem. However, the change is profound and has resulted in a start to the season with fewer free throws than normal. Despite this, surely the passing of the weeks will end up polishing the new regulations, releasing along the way of actions that should never have become a habitual resource.
(Cover photo by Rich Schultz / Getty Images)
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