James Harden finally got his way as his trade to Los Angeles was finally confirmed this week. After Tuesday’s announcement of his latest blockbuster deal, he no longer plays for the Philadelphia 76ers and therefore won’t work again for his former friend and boss Daryl Morey.
Ever since the start of training camp in October, the Sixers could only communicate with the veteran guard through his agent Michael Silverman, which meant that the 10-time All-Star didn’t want to interact at all with the club’s president.
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne explained why Harden doesn’t plan to speak to Morey again. “Harden feels very differently about the dissolution of their basketball marriage. He hasn’t spoken to Morey in months, sources told ESPN. He has told associates he doesn’t intend to speak to him ever again,” she reported.
“This is not even about this situation,” Harden had told the press in Philly three weeks ago, making sure his comments were as blunt as possible. “This is in life. When you lose trust in someone, it’s like a marriage. You lose trust in someone.”
The 34-year-old hoped to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, but as the weeks passed, he realized the contract he was expecting wasn’t going to come. Even though the 76ers reportedly offered him a max deal, it was only for two years with a team option for the second campaign.
This is why Harden became frustrated and called Morey a “liar” this summer and decided to pick up his $35.6 million player option and request a trade out of Philadelphia.
As the Clippers have five days off following this Wednesday’s clash, the superstar should have enough time to adapt to his new team and hopefully start playing in next Monday’s contest against the New York Knicks. NBA insider Shams Charania shared his thought on his potential season debut.
“I think he has been working out individually,” he said on FanDuel. “He’s been doing a lot on his own away from the Sixers during the last several weeks. But we know he’s only gone through one five-on-five scrimmage in the last month, and that came all the way on Oct. 7.”
Unfortunately for Russell Westbrook, his time with the purple and gold franchise didn’t go as expected. The former MVP became part of the Lakers bench and was constantly criticized for falling short of expectations. However, it finally came to an end this February and Paul George had his fingers crossed hoping the Clippers would sign him,
“He just did it. He just did it in Washington,” the L.A. forward said about his teammate after a dominating display against the Wizards. “No one was saying none of this when he was in Washington.”
Paul George on why he wanted Russell Westbrook after his time on the Lakers? pic.twitter.com/pXYC2i3NB8
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According to George, everyone thought Russ was done for when he first landed in Los Angeles, but he simply believes he wasn’t used properly by coach Darvin Ham.
“And he goes to the Lakers, ‘He’s done, he’s this, he’s washed,’” Paul continued. “Just all these narratives start around when he literally just was the same player that he is with us—with Washington.”
