“He came to Brooklyn expecting to be part of a three-headed monster” - Alex Schiffer on James Harden’s frustration with his Brooklyn Nets tenure
The Brooklyn Nets season has been filled with bad luck and misfortune, and it seems like the new James Harden rumors are the next big issue for the team.
The Athletic's Nets beat reporter Alex Schiffer believes the source of the problem in Brooklyn stems from Harden not having had the right kind of support from his two co-stars in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
While with the Houston Rockets, Harden was tasked with being the primary ball-handler, shot creator, and shot taker. He wanted to be traded to a team where he would have less responsibility and more help, and so far in two seasons with the Nets, they have not been able to do so. Schiffer further explained the situation, saying that Harden came to Brooklyn "expecting to be part of a three-headed monster."
“While Harden has thrown hints that he’s not crazy about Irving’s part-time status, a source with knowledge of Harden’s thinking said he’s frustrated in general with his Nets tenure. He came to Brooklyn expecting to be part of a three-headed monster, yet has played a similar role to what was required of him in Houston: having to be the guy.”
In light of yesterday’s report on the Nets being open to offers for James Harden, we needed a small, elite team to help make sense of it all. Enter @sam_amick and @johnhollinger to help make sense of it all. John and I let Amick’s California roots slide: theathletic.com/3113264?source…
Kyrie Irving's unwillingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine has played a massive role but is not the only reason for the disconnect among the team. Kevin Durant has seen chronic-knee issues in the last two seasons, forcing him to miss an extended amount of time.
Even though Durant’s injuries are out of his control, compared to Irving’s vaccination status, it still has left Harden without another star on the court to rely on. That has put a lot of weight on Harden’s shoulders, weight that he hoped not to have while being on a team with two other All-NBA players.
Would James Harden's situation with the 76ers be different?
With many recent reports linking a trade between the Nets and Philadelphia 76ers.Which would potentially see Ben Simmons to the Nets and James Harden to the 76ers. This seems like the most likely outcome should the team go this route. Joel Embiid has been putting up an MVP-caliber season, averaging 29 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists.
Harden would fit in nicely next to Embiid as someone who could create his own shot, space the floor, and be the primary playmaker. Embiid often takes the ball up the court, and usually, centers don’t do that, which is a testament to how good Embiid is as an offensive initator. Harden would also be a lights out perimeter scorer to fit with Embiid while also averaging the second-most assists per game in the league, with 10.2.
2022 #NBAAllStar Reserve @JHarden13 of the @BrooklynNets in action! https://t.co/eTZBSxNDuW
The issue is that Harden could run into the same problems that he has had with the Nets. Embiid missed his first two seasons due to a foot injury. He has played over 60 games twice in the last five seasons, but never more than 65. Last season, Embiid looked like he was running away with the MVP award, and then he got hurt.
That injury carried over into the playoffs, in which he missed time and played a significant factor in the 76ers' early exit. On top of that, Simmons alone won't be enough to get Harden, so the 76ers could lose some of their roster depth.
The health of NBA players is so unpredictable, Embiid is already up to 40 games this season and looking better than ever. If somehow Embiid does get hurt, James Harden could once again find himself in the same position he has been trying to avoid by leaving the Rockets.