James Harden is a member of the Philadelphia 76ers right now, much to the chagrin of James Harden. The team’s sky-high asking price for Harden in a trade did not materialize, so even though he opted into the final year of his contract and asked to be sent elsewhere, the Sixers shut down trade talks for the former league MVP last week.
This did not sit well with Harden, to the point that he told a group of campers at a basketball camp that Daryl Morey was a “liar,” although he did not dive into what that meant. Harden also made it a point to stress that he’ll never be part of an organization that employs Morey again, and in a recent interview with Jason Bristol of KHOU, he took things a step farther, saying that he thinks his relationship with the 76ers as a whole is beyond repair.
EXCLUSIVE: James Harden tells me he thinks his relationship w/ 76ers is beyond repair.
"I've been patient all summer."
Back from China, he's in #Houston for his 'JH-Town Weekend,' including kids carnival & celebrity softball game for charity.
Story: https://t.co/qDTacHfa51 @KHOU pic.twitter.com/gSDdAVoo9S— Jason Bristol (@JBristolKHOU) August 18, 2023
It’s worth noting that Harden has never explicitly said what has caused things to get to this point with Philadelphia. However, there were multiple occasions in the last year where he spoke about wanting more credit for sacrificing — both in money and in his role. Harden’s apparent intention is to make life “very uncomfortable” for the Sixers in the future, so perhaps he’ll be a little more direct as this saga drags on.
