Move over Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, there is another free throw merchant in town. And he just may be the OG in that category, James Harden of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Professional basketball is being played at a higher pace than ever before as the game has been transformed in the last several years. But one of the hallmarks of today’s game that isn’t highly appreciated by analysts and fans is the way players can sometimes go searching for contact and manipulating the whistle to go to the free throw line.
The reigning league and finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is seen as the poster child of this movement, whether that’s truly fair or not. And it only became cemented when Doris Burke hit him with the “free throw merchant” label in the playoffs last season. While she may not have intended it to be a dig originally, that’s definitely the way it was taken by the wide majority of basketball fans.
So when James Harden checked in to the game for the Los Angeles Clippers against the Denver Nuggets on Friday night, longtime Nuggets analyst Scott Hastings definitely knew what he was doing when he placed the label upon the bearded one.
“Now you got the other free throw merchant coming back into the game.”
— Nuggets announcer. 😬
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— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) January 31, 2026
Calling James Harden a free throw merchant is hardly the biggest dig that’s ever been taken at him from an opposing announcer. That honor still goes to Brian Dameris in Dallas after his astonishing takedown of Harden in 2023.
Believe it or not, James Harden is only 17th in all-time free throw attempts per game. In fact, he also trails Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Luka Doncic among active players. However, he has led the NBA in that category an incredible seven times, which certainly bolsters his case for being the GOAT of free throw merchants.
For what it’s worth, Harden went 5-5 from the charity stripe and scored 25 points as the Clippers lost to the Nuggets 122-109 in Nikola Jokic’s return to action.