6. The ankle-breaking crossover against Jamal Murray
On a night where Harden found himself constantly drawing double-teams and traps, the reigning Most Valuable Player somehow found a way to draw — and dispatch — yet another matchup out in isolation when the opportunity presented itself.
In an early January matchup against the Denver Nuggets, Harden took out the time to size up his defender Jamal Murray out in isolation following a screen, before busting out a behind-the-back crossover that would send the former Kentucky star falling to the hardwood.
https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1082460182729375744
He showed no remorse in the process, as the man who once set the Internet ablaze with a killer step-back and stare down of Wesley Johnson finished Murray off by knocking down the 3-point shot — and drawing the foul — for a 4-point play.
"“It kind of caught me off guard how he fell,” Harden told reporters in the moments following the outing. “I tried to knock down the shot after.” “I got to finish. That’s what makes the move, it’s the finish. Finish what you started.”"
Although Murray sought to redeem himself by not giving up on the play to contest Harden’s shot, this particular reel will go down as one of the top plays of the year, as The Beard added another highlight to his all-time hoops vault that will likely be featured prominently as part of his official season’s mixtape.