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UPDATE: As of this writing on May 15, 2023, Harden has choked for two years in a row with the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Playoffs. Nothing has changed. 

Don't get me wrong, James Harden is one of the best players in the NBA today. He's one of the most gifted scorers of all time, and will likely go down as one of the greatest shooting guards in league history. 

However, it still doesn't escape the fact that The Beard has had some underwhelming playoff performances. He did not play his best against Milwaukee Bucks, as Kevin Durant shouldered the majority of the load for the Brooklyn Nets.

This year's lackluster performance could be excused by Harden's injury, but what about the past few years. What about all those times Harden has "choked" with the Houston Rockets, or his disappearing act with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2012 NBA Finals? 


There have been a lot of moments where I was rooting for Harden to overcome, but he always underperformed when it mattered the most. Harden stans will be quick to show statistics supporting that The Beard shows up in the playoffs.

For the most part, I'd say he does. But it's hard to argue against what Twitter user @BeansGoated put together in a viral thread this past week. He showed all the times Harden disappeared or choked in the playoffs since 2012.

Harden fans were pretty quiet to the thread. It's hard to argue against it. I remember those moments where Harden choked, such as getting blocked by Manu Ginobili in a game against the San Antonio Spurs where they did not have Kawhi Leonard. 

Harden showed up overweight and blew up a playoff-contending Houston Rockets team single-handedly to force his way into a Big Three with the Brooklyn Nets, and yet they still could not win the title. 

It's funny that his former teammates made it farther than he did in the postseason (Chris Paul, PJ Tucker, Clint Capela, etc.). 

So with that said, let's take a look at what the Twitter thread has to offer. Screenshots are below in case the thread were to get deleted off Twitter.

Let us know what you think. Is Harden a choker? 


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