It’s Time To Face The Harsh Reality About James Harden
We tried to tell y’all about James Harden, but you wouldn’t listen.
Back in February, the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets pulled off a blockbuster trade which landed Harden in Philadelphia. The general consensus was that Harden would be the perfect Robin to Joel Embiid’s Batman. He is the perfect second star in Philly. Ben Simmons was never going to bring this team a championship. 76ers fans went nuts, proclaiming them the title favorites. Well, look where they are now. With Joel Emiid out tonight in a pivotal game three, this 76ers team will go down 3-0 in this series to the Miami Heat, and James Harden deserves tons of blame. Why? Because the reality is that James Harden is on the other side of the hill.
I think Harden has peaked. There is nothing special about him anymore. Team’s are figuring him out. If you can keep him from the foul line, he isn’t terribly dangerous. Plus, he is a cancer which is something you never want in a locker room. This should garner a LOT of heat from casuals out there, but let me explain.
This is a guy that has quit on basketball. Quit on his teammates. When he wanted out of Houston, the team wouldn’t trade him at first. So what did he do? He ballooned up and came into camp so out of shape. Naturally, once he started playing games he shed a little weight but it was apparent he was still overweight. Then the move to Brooklyn happened, and he rushed to get back into shape and he developed a nagging hamstring injury. Pair that with some sort of fear about playoff games, and he is not someone you want on your roster come playoff time.
In the 76ers first two games against the Miami Heat, check out the box score for James Harden.
- Game 1: 5/13 shooting (2/7 from 3pt), 9 rebs, and 5 ast. -8 -/+
- Game 2: 6/15 shooting (1/5 from 3pt) 4 rebs and 9 ast. -10 -/+
The numbers don’t lie. He is a liability on the court. While on the court, this team is a combined -18 which is awful. This guy is supposed to be the savior of this team with Joel Embiid out? Pass. This Miami Heat team, which is deleted themselves, are making this 76ers team look silly. Harden should be FEASTING on this team, and where has he been? Nowhere. Because prime Harden is long gone. He is developing into nothing more than a role player at best.
The sad part about this, for 76ers fans at least, is that Harden can opt into the final year of his contract, making roughly $47M. After that year is done, he will likely sign a 4-year/ $220M supermax contract. Philadelphia will be tied to that money for the foreseeable future and will quickly learn he isn’t worth that money. Right now, I don’t know if I would pay him more than $10M a year. He is playing like an above-average 6th man.
It’s time to accept the reality of James Harden. He isn’t worth max money. He isn’t worth a starter’s role right now. Is he washed? That’s for others to say, not me. But I will tell you this. I would’ve rather had Ben Simmons who didn’t play a single game this season over this form of James Harden. Both guys do have something in common though, they both have a reputation for quitting on their teams.
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