James Harden explains why he tried to intercept Kawhi Leonard’s three-point shot: “Something to laugh about”

In sports, odd moments happen constantly, and people have mixed reactions towards them. Sometimes it’s funny, sometimes strange, and sometimes a combination of both, which is extremely rare. We got to experience a similar situation in the NBA on Wednesday.

The NBA universe came upon a similar situation where James Harden tried to block his teammate Kawhi Leonard’s shot, and when asked about it, he gave a strange reason that cracked everybody up.

Real reason James Harden tried to intercept a teammate’s shot

In a matchup between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, the NBA community stumbled upon a strange moment in the third quarter of the match, where James Harden passed the ball to Kawhi Leonard, who was open for an easy corner three-point attempt. But after making the pass, Harden decided to contest his teammate himself, as he was widely open for the shot, which made him miss the shot.

“Gotta bring some excitement to this team,” Harden explained by saying. “I think these last few weeks have been a fall for us, and I think every team goes through it. So I think it’s just me just trying to create a great energy, create a great vibe for this team.”

“I mean, it would’ve been better if he made the shot. Give something to laugh about, some excitement.”

The Clippers were already on a 15-2 run and up by 21 points, so Harden decided to break the shot that he created himself as the Trail Blazers had a defensive fallout. Even though Leonard missed the shot, Ivica Zubac got the offensive rebound, and they ended up scoring a three-pointer on the same play.

James Harden’s attempted Kawhi Leonard block is good for Clippers

After the game, Harden spoke with the reporters during the post-game interview and told them that it was just to lighten up the team’s mood and bring some excitement to the match, as they needed a change of vibe surrounding them.

The Clippers had an 8-10 record entering the matchup on Wednesday, and while they were looking like a possible number 1 seed in the west, they have slumped down to 5th position, and this stunt by Harden might’ve uplifted the mood of the squad.

There have been similar sightings of such plays, like when LeBron James tried to block Rajon Rondo’s layup as a joke back in 2019, but it was fun for the team and the fans.