James Harden reportedly “remains upset” that the 76ers haven’t traded him to the Clippers, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and he is causing chaos.
Harden is not in Philadelphia as the team prepares to host its media day. It is the second time in three seasons that a star guard for the 76ers has skipped media day due to a trade demand after Ben Simmons, who was eventually traded to the Nets for Harden, did the same in 2021.
The ten-time All-Star “could be subject to a fine” for skipping the media day obligations. Harden, who called 76ers executive Daryl Morey a “liar” earlier this offseason, may eventually receive harsher punishments than just a fine.
According to this obscure clause, if he decides to hold out, Harden will still essentially owe his final year of service to Philadelphia in perpetuity even if the front office does not find a trade for him.
There is reportedly “no traction” on a trade with the 76ers and Clippers, or any other team, per Woj. That means that even though he said he would never play for Morey again, he might have to.
Meanwhile, as he skips media day obligations and causes distractions for the team, multiple other contenders in the East have recently become stronger.
The Bucks traded for Damian Lillard and immediately became the favorites to win the title. Then, the Celtics traded for Jrue Holiday and closed the gap on the Bucks.
This whole saga is likely incredibly frustrating for Joel Embiid, who went through something similar with Simmons fairly recently and presumably just wants to focus on winning his first NBA championship.
It can’t be easy for Tyrese Maxey, who deserves to know if he will start or come off the bench at the beginning of next season.
There is no way this is fun for head coach Nick Nurse, who is taking over the position from Doc Rivers. He would assuredly rather talk about basketball-related storylines than the theatrics involving Harden.
Harden is within his rights to try to squeeze out every ounce of the little bit of leverage he can possibly create to force a trade. But ultimately, there just may not be a suitable deal for him that Morey and the 76ers are willing to take and he will have no choice but to wait it out — or just play for Philadelphia.
