James Harden, who had been away from the Sixers since October 15, has reported back to the team, according to Adrian Wonjarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
As Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer tweets, Harden is expected to take part in Wednesday’s practice before the 76ers leave for Milwaukee for Thursday’s regular season opener vs. the Bucks. Wojnarowski confirms that’s the case (Twitter link).
Harden, who hasn’t played at all in the preseason and reportedly participated in just one five-on-five scrimmage back on Oct. 7, will have to ramp back up to game shape and won’t be active on Thursday in Milwaukee, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter video link).
Although Harden showed up prepared to travel with the Sixers to Milwaukee, the club will have him remain in Philadelphia to continue his ramp-up process, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT (Twitter link). After facing the Bucks, the 76ers will play in Toronto on Saturday before returning to Philadelphia to host the Trail Blazers on Sunday.
Harden, who asked the Sixers to trade him in June when he picked up his player option for the 2023/24 season, has expressed frustration with the slow pace of the negotiations multiple times in the months since then.
Back in August, he referred to Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey as a “liar” during a promotional event, later explaining to the NBA when the league investigated those comments that the club hadn’t delivered on its assurances that it would trade him “quickly.”
Harden skipped media day and the first day of training camp before reporting to the 76ers this fall. After spending nearly two weeks with the team, he departed last Sunday without an excused absence. However, Philadelphia later said Harden was away due to a personal matter, and there has been no indication that the club fined him for missing practices or its final preseason game.
Now that the regular season is underway, Harden could potentially boost his trade value a little by getting into game shape, showing that he’s fully healthy, and playing like his usual self. We’ll see if that’s the next step in this saga or if there are more surprises on tap before he takes the court this season.
No one cares about the blob
Well, even the Blob himself is beginning to realize this
He doesn’t want to lose that game check
Of course he did. Harden has no leverage.
Yes, a multi millionaire who could find work in other countries and is at the end of his career and he has millions of dollars and has bank accounts with millions of dollars and is currently being paid millions of dollars HAS NO LEVERAGE…
Ok, keep believing that Philly fan.
Harden has no leverage! If he had leverage, he wouldn’t have reported back. He has no choice. Don’t report and get fined nearly $400k per game, and get your free agency pushed back.
Harden has no leverage. He has no choice now, but to shut up and play. Who cares. He is no longer a difference-maker in the NBA.
He literally has no leverage though – that’s why he’s been complaining about Morey, because he’s completely reliant on Morey to get what he wants. If he doesn’t turn up, he gets fined – so he’s turning up.
I’m assuming you know what the word leverage actually means..
He can only find work in other countries…
That’s his lack of leverage right there…
I still think he just wants to go to the Clippers, but he probably would be more valuable going to a #8 or 9 seed to make them more of a 6 or 7 seed if he played like he should. No top 5 team wants that cancer around.
Just shave the Beard already
If he came in with a mustache or goatee it would be hilarious, he can’t bc his brand is literally his beard. But it would personify his level of effort. Like you’re not getting the full beard, just 60%.
Head case x a mill. Guy gets mad at Morey after he’s offering him to Clippers for less than his value and they still don’t want him. Are Clippers really holding s**t up about a 27 year old 5th starter / 6 man who’s nothing crazy?
Here’s a thought, don’t opt into a deal with your player option and go choose where you go next…
The clippers fancy themselves a contender, laughable. Morey knows.
Mann is a 6th man on that current roster. You add Harden, and hes 7th or 8th. That’s the confusing part. Like if you really wanted to kinda replace him, Kendrick Nunn is available today. 14.1 PER, 44-39-90%, 7.5pts 1.7trb 1.8ast 0.5 stl in 31 games for Washington in only 14mpg last year to end the season. Not a great defender, no one will accuse him of that. But were talking your 3rd or 4th PG behind Westbrook, Harden, and Bones.
So it’s weird like Harden + PJ for Morris, Batum, RoCo, Mann and a FRP. 1 guy is ready to retire. 2 guys that would be vet mins if FAs today, and a fringe starter at PG/SG that’s 27. The FRP will not be a high value pick either. Clippers are immediately better, and they’ll pick up a guy or two somewhere to add front court depth.
Sixers would have to move 2 or 3 of those guys coming in or move some on the current roster… that’s the only real justified hang up. Like what do you do with your roster. Do you try and put a package together for a LaVine or just dump off guys in 2 for 1 or 3 for 1 for an expiring Hayward contract or something of that ilk. That’s the only challenging part. How do you turn this into a 3 or 4 team deal that works.
Kendrick Nunn signed in Greece for $2.5 million.
He did? Good for him, shouldn’t have been on the street so long. At least got the vet min level even if it’s in Greece.
Guy also gets mad at Morey, who was the only guy in the league interested in giving him multiple years at $30+ million.
Harden has to be top five most overrated players in NBA history.
Ridiculous comment.
People/media hate him so they regurgitate nonsense statements like this. I’m not a fan but he was great and still is very good…I just don’t want him on my team so on that one Harden and I/we (Philly) agree
Top 5 SG of all time. MJ, Kobe, D Wade, AI, Harden.
really, Z? Klay Thompson?
Klay is behind guys like Iceman, Glide, Vinsanity, Reggie, Pearl, Hal Greer… TMac, Shuttlesworth, Sam Jones, Manu and Dumars, you could argue his spot among the best sgs in the 12-17 range tho.
Klay is top 3 all time….we disagree
Harden is top 5 in over rated…
Some fools think he is HoF quality… No titles, no good deads for basketball… No HoF…
No trade with the clippers makes a lick of sense for sixers ! Keep him till the deadline use his contract that’s expiring and the one first they can trade and see what they can get from a team that’s selling ( then harden gets bought out and joins clippers ala Russ last year)
If they can’t get anything that clippers do do platter will still be there to take Bc no other team would value a package of Morris roco and a pick while sending the clippers a OK player back
Nah if you’re going to just waive him, you do it after the deadline to add a player to your playoff roster. That’s how you win the spite game.
I meant the team that trades for the harden expiring contract like the jazz traded for Russ then waived him l. Sixers worst case is just circling back to the clippers low ball offer !
Harden has to make himself available to play (even PHI isn’t going to pay him if he doesn’t do at least that). The issue is how long does PHI (Morey) tolerate him being available, but not ready.
Morey doesn’t understand things like team development, but this can’t be good for it. Him being with the team is only a good thing if he’s in some kind of shape. If the ramp up doesn’t keep, and Harden’s history suggests it won’t, then they should send him home.
Harden is just proving his worth…
This is what another team has to expect from him… He’ll throw his toys out of the pram at the drop of a hat but doesn’t have the balls to go on strike…
I wish wonderfully physically lucky but now arrogant players like Harden & Kyrie would just get released. Neither are enjoyable enough to watch to outweigh their awful personalities.