Philadelphia 76er’s general manager Daryl Morey is now essentially in a stand-off with 10x All-Star, James Harden, who despite opting into his $35.6 million contract, actually wants a trade away from the city of Philadelphia. According to NBA writer Mark Medina, though, Morey is accustomed to these types of situations and is prepared to ‘deal with the awkwardness’.
NBA news – Philadelphia 76ers
Much of the Philadelphia 76ers' free agency has centered around James Harden after he surprised fans around the NBA by opting into his $35.6 million player option with the team in order to seek a trade, as first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The 33-year-old had hoped that his next landing destination would be the L.A. Clippers, but negotiations between the two parties has reportedly ended, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The 6x All-NBA first-teamer accused Sixers GM Daryl Morey of being a ‘liar’ after he was reportedly promised he would be traded “quickly”, per The Athletic. Harden was then issued a $100,000 fine by the NBA for his public comments.
The feud between the Sixers star and his GM is far from over, and what will happen next still remains to be seen.
How does Mark Medina think Daryl Morey will handle the situation?
Medina thinks that due to Daryl Morey’s history being in similar situations, that he will be prepared to go through an uncomfortable period should James Harden decide to exhaust all measures of forcing a trade away from the Sixers.
Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the journalist said: “Daryl Morey will certainly exhaust all options, but the reality is they've already exhausted a lot of options and there's just not really a market for James Harden unless they want to accept players that are role players, and basically a deal that takes them out of championship contention.”
“So I think moving forward, Daryl Morey’s comfortable dealing with the awkwardness, James Harden's comfortable with acting out of character. I think it's going to be this ultimate game of chicken of who blinks first. If I had to put my money on it, I think Daryl Morey will continue to ride it out.”
“Even though you don't discount that, James Harden could act up even more. He could, you know, arrive at a training camp out of shape, he can share more details maybe from his perspective of Daryl Morey promising a lucrative contract after taking a pay cut last summer, which would be in violation of NBA tampering rules.”
“But I think that Daryl Morey has had a history of handling the awkwardness as a GM and being patient with finding the trade that he wants.”
How did James Harden perform for the Sixers last season?
The former MVP award winner has found himself on three teams in as many seasons.
During the 2022-23 regular season, Harden was an integral piece of a 76ers roster that has been built around 2023 NBA MVP, Joel Embiid, and together they formed one of the league’s best duos.
As per Statmuse, in his first full season with the team, Harden averaged 21.0 points, 6.1 rebounds and 10.7 assists, with a true shooting percentage of 60.7 after a year in which he shot 44.1% from the field and 38.5% from three-point range.
There is no-doubt that even though Harden’s numbers are not necessarily what they once were, he would be a big loss for a team who are still in the mix in the Eastern Conference to find their way to the 2024 NBA Finals.
If Harden finds a way to force himself out, the Sixers may find themselves out of playoff contention altogether if they can’t get the value in return that they desire.
Everything will depend on Sixers GM Daryl Morey, though, and he has shown in the past that he is not afraid of the backlash that has come from his decision-making.