James Harden returned and had 18 points on eight shots, 11 assists, seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks in the Nets' 128-116 win over the Spurs last night.
He looked great.
Except when sticking out his leg in an apparent attempt to trip San Antonio guard Dejounte Murray.
Murray in a since-deleted tweet quote-tweeting video of the play:
Harden and Murray have a history.
I don't know what Harden intended last night. Everything looks more deliberate in slow motion.
The case it wasn't purposefully dirty: Harden can be a lazy defender, and sticking out a foot to stop someone is an instinctive move when being lazy.
The case it was purposefully dirty: Just watch it.
At minimum, it was reckless.