James Harden clearly sees himself as a victim who’s been wronged by Daryl Morey and, by extension, the Philadelphia 76ers, who didn’t furnish him with the long-term, big money contract he felt he deserved, and perhaps was informally promised, after he took a pay cut last summer.
But it’s more than the Sixers telling Harden that he’s not worth what he thinks he is. Indeed, if Harden was in high demand, he could have, and surely would have, declined his $35.6 million player option for 2023-24 and gotten paid in free agency.
Instead, the Rockets, whom Harden hung as a threat over the Sixers all season, didn’t want him. Now the Clippers, Harden’s preferred destination, don’t appear to want him all that badly, either, or at least not for a price befitting Morey’s expectations. So now, out of options, Harden is resorting to calling Morey a liar for not honoring his word on whatever handshake deal he thinks they made at a different time under different circumstances.
Harden’s hypocrisy is astounding. This is a guy who has already failed to honor his contractual commitment to two organizations (partying his way out of Houston before bailing on Brooklyn, and it appears he’s going for the trifecta with Philadelphia after just accepting the $35.6 million for next season), painting somebody else as two-faced. Truly rich stuff.
It gets better. Harden, according to his agent, Troy Payne, feels so disrespected by not just Morey, but by an entire league that no longer believes his talent is worthy of limitless leverage, that he might just mess around and win MVP this coming season.
“James has a crazy hunger in him right now,” Payne said on the The Hidden Gems podcast. “If he got an MVP this season, I wouldn’t be surprised. That’s what kind of hunger he got in him right now, just from the disrespect … you know, the free agency stuff, which I don’t really want to get into.”
Payne goes on to detail Harden’s offseason workouts, saying he’s practicing at 7 a.m. and then playing ball again after photo shoots. Well then, when you put it like that! An NBA player is working out for four hours a day? And he’s paying attention to his nutrition? Man, look out! This dude’s about to conquer the world!
Or — and just hear me out here — perhaps Harden’s bar for commitment to his craft and fitness has, at times, dipped so low that basic levels of either feel extraordinary. I don’t know. I’m torn. Maybe I’m wrong and everyone is positively terrified of the wrath that disrespected Harden is about to unleash.
But MVP? Even understanding the baked-in ingredients of an agent’s hyperbole, and Harden’s 21-and-10 numbers last season notwithstanding, this is a high-comedy take. Dude says he’s not even going to go to training camp for the Sixers, and now he’s going to win MVP? Sure.
Here’s a reminder for Harden and Mr. Payne: That V in MVP? That stands for valuable. The market, as it turns out, tends to reflect value, and there is, at the moment, positively no market for Harden. You do that math. Harden can feel slighted all he wants, but in the end, if he isn’t getting the respect he deserves, he only has himself to blame.
James Harden’s agent makes ridiculous MVP claim, cites ‘crazy hunger’ amid offseason ‘disrespect’
