McHale: Harden’s Ability to Draw Fouls is Unique

(Houston Rockets James) Harden leads the NBA in scoring at 27.0 points per game because of his ability to draw fouls and the craftiness of his dribble drives. It’s difficult to get a clean block and he is physical enough to draw contact. After a rough 2012 NBA Finals with the Thunder (12.4 ppg, 37.5 percent shooting), Harden has turned himself into a nearly unstoppable force in Houston.

“He knows how to draw fouls. In our league the rules are set up that you really can’t touch guys in the perimeter, and James is playing downhill a lot,” McHale said. “He’s very strong. He’s got really strong hands and he keeps them in front of him and you go and try to take it from him, and it’s very tempting, and everybody reaches in and grabs his arm and he shoots free throws. Knowing how to get fouled is an art and it’s really a hard art to teach.”

via Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe