It is a conditioned reflex. When we look up to see smoke, we next look down to see if we can spot fire.

Perhaps because it is too preposterous to be believed, it didn’t make a lot of news when it broke Tuesday.

Regardless, the story has produced enough smoke to suspect a fire. And if true, it is up there — or down there — with Aaron Hernandez-stunning, crazy-ugly.

James Harden, NBA superstar of the Rockets, as of last week stands accused, as per a lawsuit filed by a reputable law firm, of ordering and financing “a hit” on the son of ex-NBA superstar Moses Malone.

With the story based in Houston, the story, thus far, goes like this:

Moses Malone Jr., on Facebook, last June put the knock on Harden for charging $249 to attend his basketball camp — a fee, Malone claimed, that eliminated poor, inner-city kids.

Harden, the story continues, was insulted by that charge.

Two days after Malone’s Facebook posting, he was in or just outside a now-shuttered Houston strip club at 2 a.m. when he was beaten and robbed by four men, at least one armed, who referenced that Facebook posting during the alleged assault.

The four, including club bouncer Darian Blount, were arrested, charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.

Malone’s lawsuit claims Harden was in the club at the time of the attack — an attack ordered by Harden with the promise of $20,000 to Blount.

Speaking to ESPN, George Farah, Malone’s attorney, said, “There were text messages between Moses and some of James Harden’s friends. … We have a good trail of evidence that leads to Harden’s involvement in this.”

Harden’s attorney is Rusty Hardin. He is the country-slick lawyer whose bright idea it was to escort Roger Clemens to the offices of selected Congressmen, providing them with autographed photos, prior to Clemens testifying before those particular politicians in a Congressional committee hearing on illegal drug use in MLB, specifically by Clemens.

Hardin dismissed the suit against Harden as a mere nuisance, a transparent attempt to grab a celebrity’s money. But that may be standard, wishful lawyering.

Clearly, something arrest-ugly went down. The first-glance preposterous nevertheless seems — seems — to point to a fire that started the smoke, especially given that 2 a.m. in a strip club is not when they serve toast points and tea.

What happens next?

What and who inspired Blount and three others charged with beating and robbing Malone to conduct their alleged attack? Plea bargains might reveal much.

And if this civil case is heard, nothing short of a not-guilty judgment allows Harden his full innocence in the public eye. If a preemptive financial settlement with Malone is reached, that may be interrupted by some as a tacit admission that Harden had something to do with the beating, robbery and subsequent arrests.

What would the NBA next do?

And if Harden testifies in a civil case, which he probably would be compelled to do, his testimony potentially could be admissible in a criminal case if an indictment follows, though Harden, as the accused, would not be compelled to testify.

And if convicted but not sentenced to incarceration, how would the NBA handle that?

My sense of smell tells me that this is no one-and-done, in-other-sports-news story. This could be the start of something big. So much smoke.

ESPN demeans those it tries to praise

Though pandering, especially weighing matters based on anything less than right or wrong, has no upside, it continues as an epidemic that leaves us all diminished.

ESPN’s late Sunday night and Monday night baseball continues its in-game “Explaining Latinos to Stupid White Americans” theme, pitching Latino players as so naturally enthusiastic (read: demonstrably immodest) that they can’t help but display that “enthusiasm” (for themselves) during games.

That is among those gross rationalizations that insult the intended beneficiaries, in this case Latinos. It is similar to: “Don’t expect better from Latinos.”

Meanwhile, evidence to the contrary continues to mount.

Jose Bautista’s excessive, check-me-out bat flip in Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS against Texas was answered, the next year, by a punch to his head from Texas infielder Rougned Odor.

Odor and Bautista are Latino. Wasn’t Odor aware Bautista was just naturally expressing their culture?

Wednesday against the Braves, Bautista made with another how-great-I-art bat flip.

Batting in the first inning of Thursday’s game, Braves starter Julio Teheran nailed Bautista with a fastball in the thigh. Clearly, Teheran, from Colombia, also didn’t get the ESPN message on Latinos; he didn’t understand where Bautista was coming from — the Dominican Republic.

And what about ESPN’s Dan Le Batard, the hip, tough-talking know-it-all put-down artist? What’s his take on Aaron Judge?

Judge quickly has become enormously popular because he not only produces, he plays hard, taking nothing for granted — and he doesn’t apologize for it. Also, he is modest, congenial, polite. Where did his folks go wrong?

So now where is Le Betard to mock Judge, an African-American, as an uncool fool for playing “the right way,” a phrase Le Betard decoded as “playing the white way”?

Tapestry of tape history

Sports Funhouse, as heard on Twitter, has prevented Mike “Let’s Be Honest” Francesa and WFAN from “losing” any more tapes.

Now, for your listening pleasure, there is a recording of Francesa two months ago blowing hard that Kentucky guard Malik Monk doesn’t meet with his standards or approval. He interrupts a caller to say, “I don’t like Monk; not a big Monk fan.”

Last week, Francesa shamelessly jumped, and hard, on the Monk bandwagon, calling him a special player the Knicks, if possible, should draft.

Not that Sports Funhouse keeps Francesa honest — you can’t return one to a place they never have been.

Interesting that NBC would spend the NHL regular season posting useless, distracting “shift clocks” tracking star players, then lose them during the playoffs, likely because they’re useless and distracting.

Then there are those awkward in-game, on-bench, hate-to-bother-you interviews with coaches. They generally add nothing beyond, “Look what we can do!”

If there is something worth asking, ask it. Otherwise, don’t bother them or us with hate-to-bother-you chats.

Not that much about modern baseball makes much sense, but I still can’t figure why slumping batters — Jay Bruce, Curtis Granderson, Chris Carter, of late — look at strike one, when it is the best pitch to hit they likely will see.

Tony Gonzalez — sensational, personable NFL tight end — retired, joining CBS’ pregame studio panel where, unfortunately, he didn’t add much. So now he will be on FOX’s NFL studio show.

Will Steiner Collectibles sell Aaron Hernandez death certificates of authenticity?