“Defenders aren’t preparing to stop James Harden, they want the refs to do that”: Gilbert Arenas discuss his issues with the new NBA rules against foul hunting

ex- NBA player Gilbert Arenas talk about why he is not on side of the new NBA rule changes and how it’s going to impact some of the top players

This NBA season so far, we have seen James Harden struggling to get to the free-throw line. He is not getting rewarded for what the league calls “foul hunting”. But Gilbert Arenas doesn’t seem to like the impact of this rule change.

You can check the official NBA meaning of foul hunting here:

For the 2021-22 NBA season, there will be an interpretive change in the officiating of overt, abrupt or abnormal non-basketball moves by offensive players with the ball in an effort to draw fouls. The following Points of Education videos showcase areas where a change was needed:

— NBA Official (@NBAOfficial) September 30, 2021

Also Read: “It’s been so satisfying to watch the game without all those bullsh*t calls!”: Warriors’ Draymond Green is really pleased with the new NBA rule changes

How does Gilbert Arenas relate to James Harden as a scorer encountered by these rule changes?

Gilbert Arenas was an amazing scorer in his prime years with Washington Wizards. In the 2006-07 season, he averaged 29.4 pts. Gilbert was known for his shifty moves and the ability to draw fouls at a high rate. Guess who’s famous for that now?

Yes! It’s James Harden. So it seems obvious Gilbert having issues with the rule change. He said, ” You are taking away the creative genius of what these guys are bringing”.

Also Read: “I’d be trading Frank Vogel first!”: Gilbert Arenas goes off on hyperbolic rant about Lakers head coach, blames him for making LeBron James and Anthony Davis’ lives tougher

While some consider foul hunting as against the spirit of the game, Gilbert thinks of it as a creative style of play.

James Harden was averaging 8.7 free throw attempts per game for his career before this season. But he’s only averaging 5.4 this season so far, which is less than half of his 2019-2020 season FTA(11.8). Damian Lillard‘s FTA has dropped down to 3.2 from last season’s 7.2.

Harden is also pretty inconsistent (compared to the past) in his scoring so far averaging 19.5 pts. Definitely him not being in shape is one of the reasons, but no one can deny the impact of the new rule change.

Clearly, the rule change has impacted other players too. Unless the league decides to change it again, it looks like players have to unlearn the practice of foul hunting which they have done in the past.