This guy might very well be one of the worst team players in NBA history! The Philadelphia 76ers have an all-out mutiny on their hands as James Harden has publicly and viciously called out the organization and team president Daryl Morey to trade him.
If you want to understand why James Harden will NEVER be considered amongst the greats at the point guard position, this is why.
Despite having a career renaissance in Philadelphia, James Harden has come out hard against the team and president Daryl Morey by calling him a “liar” and demanding a trade out of Philadelphia immediately. And, being completely honest, the only place James Harden should be traded to is the trash.
This guy is seriously one of the worst team sports players I have ever seen and probably has ever existed. For those who don’t know the situation well, the 76ers have been going through a pretty rough patch of late as they not only failed to make it out of the 2nd round…again…last season and blew a 3-2 series lead over the Celtics (which cost Doc Rivers his job), but they also have been dealing with massive locker room turmoil over said playoff woes.
And none so more than from the 2018 NBA MVP himself: James Harden.
It really should come as no surprise that a guy who has literally forced himself out of four different teams (and three over the last four seasons) is as temperamental as a hungry infant, though it really should be a surprise that Harden wanted out of the Philly project.
After a disastrous spell in Brooklyn that saw him grow old, slow, ineffective, and fat, Harden was given a lifeline to resurrect his career in the now infamous Harden-Simmons trade that saw him get shipped out to the city of Brotherly Love.
And, in the 1.25 years he’s been in Philly, he’s actually been one of the most effective point guards in the league as he’s averaged 21.0 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 10.6 APG, 1.2 SPG, he was named to the 2022 NBA All-Star game, and was the leading assister in the league last season as his teammate Joel Embiid, who lead the league in scoring, finished as the NBA MVP.
Sure, the 76ers have been bounced both from the 2nd round in both postseason with Harden, but this team was actually building something capable of competing against the Celtics, Heat, and Bucks for an Eastern Conference championship title. And now that’s all ruined because James Harden is more toxic than lung cancer.
I’m sorry (not really) to any Harden fan out there, but the guy just simply is an EXTRAORDINARILY selfish, egocentric player who only cares about himself and his own stats and perception over literally everything else in the world. And that includes his teammates, his own team, and the fans of said team who love and adore him on a nightly basis.
James Harden was BELOVED in Houston as he helped the Rockets turn into a powerhouse in the West for the first time since Hakeem Olajuwon was winning championships for the Rockets in the mid 1990’s as Houston reached two Western Conference Finals with him.
Sure, they lost both times against the all-powerful Warriors dynasty, but that really shouldn’t matter given how useless the Rockets were without Harden (they made it out of the 2nd round once in the 15 years before Harden joined the team and the last Conference Finals berth with Olajuwan).
And Harden’s 2017/18 MVP winning season was the icing on the cake as he was the league’s best PG, scorer, and player (obviously) on a nightly basis for the Rockets…which they hadn’t seen since Hakeem Olajuwon was manning the center spot.
Yet, due to Harden growing antsy and wanting to win a title IMMEDIATELY on a super team, he completely abandoned the Rockets projected, didn’t report to their training camp and let himself grow fat and slow (which hurt him in Brooklyn), stuck his nose up at the Rockets fans, players, and management, and then forced a trade to Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant’s doom-driven Nets super team.
And then he did the same thing in Brooklyn when things didn’t go his way, and now he’s doing it in Philly by saying, “Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of. Let me say that again: Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of.”
Now, I don’t really know the context behind this quote or what Harden was doing, but it looked like he was lecturing to his rabid followers about how awful and horrible the 76ers and Daryl Morey are for not trading away a former MVP and the league leader in assists for a bag of peanuts.
I know there was a gentleman’s agreement of sorts between Harden and Morey to trade the PG during this offseason, but if the 76ers can’t get a good offer for him, then why should they trade him? Because Harden says so?
Hey, James Harden, I’ve got to tell you something…YOU SIGNED A CONTRACT! What’s the purpose of signing a 2-year, $68.6M contract (which had the final year as a player option…one Harden EXCERSIED) and then demanding a trade the very next year after signing it? Do you realize how damaging your actions are to the NBA and your fellow players?
What owner would want to dish out multi-millions of dollars to players who not only play less than 60 games/season (Harden hasn’t played more than 70 games in four years), but who also demand trade when the slightest bit of an inconvenience occurs? I know I wouldn’t, you know you wouldn’t, and these owners are justified in not wanting to pay either…and that’s going to affect players who actually deserve to be paid for their tremendous play and accomplishments (unlike Harden).
James Harden should never have been able to get away with jumping ship so many times before in the past, and I hope this time he FINALLY gets what’s coming to him: he’s forced to play in a situation that is slightly inconvenient for him.
Or, better yet, the 76ers should deactivate him now and let him walk away as a free agent at the end of the year…when he’s going to be 35 years old and a full year away from playing his last professional basketball game.
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