NBA scoring leader James Harden said he had no intention of making a political statement wearing a ‘Thin Blue Line’ mask on Thursday, claiming he did not know what the mask represented.
The Thin Blue Line flag is a black and white US flag with a blue stripe replacing a white stripe. Thin Blue Line USA, the group that sells the flags, says the thin blue line represents officers in the line of duty and the black represents fallen officers.
Photos of Harden in the mask that appeared on official Rockets and NBA social media accounts sparked a fierce online debate when they were released Thursday night under the title “Mask.”
“I was honestly not trying to make a political statement,” Harden said before the Rockets’ practice Friday. “I honestly used it just because it covered my entire face and my beard. It’s pretty simple. “
Harden practiced with his team for the first time in more than four months on Thursday, saying his arrival at the league restart bubble at Walt Disney World was delayed by family problems.
The 30-year-old swingman arrived at Disney earlier this week, met the league’s mandatory quarantine requirements, and was cleared to participate.
“I am happy to be here,” said Harden. “It felt really, really good to be here with the guys, chasing him, just making our way. Each day will be a new challenge for us ”.
Harden has been exercising, but said Thursday was his first time playing real 5-on-5 basketball in more than a month.
“I struggled to get through it today,” said Harden.
Harden’s arrival means that Houston finally has half of its defense zone at Disney. On Monday, guard Russell Westbrook revealed he tested positive for Covid-19.
It is unknown when Westbrook will be ready to arrive. But Harden wasted no time in impressing his teammates.
“It looked good,” said Houston coach Mike D’Antoni. “It was probably rusty for about 30 seconds. … A good start “.
Rocket guard Ben McLeMore was more succinct.
“James himself. … He didn’t miss a beat,” said McLeMore.
D’Antoni did not expect Harden to do a lot of 5v5 work initially, thinking he would need some time to catch his breath. But Harden came completely ready, in D’Antoni’s eyes, showing that whatever regimen he was following had been worth it.
“James is smart,” said D’Antoni. “He knows his body. He knows what he needs to do. He will come late at night if he needs additional shots or if he needs to run more, he will. But he loves to play. He is the best professional at what you need to do to prepare. So I totally trust him. “
Harden is very easy to win his third consecutive title. He is averaging 34.4 points, well ahead of second place Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards. Beal, who is not involved in the restart due to injury, finished the season with an average of 30.5 points.
The only way Harden could fall below Beal’s average is if he played in Houston’s remaining eight games and scored a total of 11 points or less. If Harden played in seven of the eight games and was fully scored in each, he would still finish ahead of Beal.
Harden would become the seventh player in NBA history to win at least three consecutive scoring crowns, joining George Mikan, Neil Johnston, Wilt Chamberlain, George Gervin, Michael Jordan, and Kevin Durant.
