"That's why he's pissed off": LeBron James' former teammate suspects James Harden is fuming after losing $200,000,000
The James Harden and Philadelphia 76ers impasse is likely going to get ugly before it gets resolved. Harden has already vowed that he would not play for the team as long as president Daryl Morey is part of the franchise.
Richard Jefferson, LeBron James’ former teammate, tossed in his thoughts about how both parties arrived at this situation:
“So they’re (76ers) saying that ‘We have max dollars to spend. We’re not spending them on you, James Harden, because we don’t believe in you.’
“That’s where he’s pissed off. ‘I walked away from $200 million and being the first $60 million player because I wanted to pair up with my old GM, and I wanted to pair up with Joel Embiid and you guys made me these promises to get me out of Kevin Durant. And because we had a relationship, I believed in you. And, then, after I took less money so you guys could bring in more guys in my first year, now you don’t even reward me.'"
In the summer of 2022, James Harden opted out of a $47.4 million player option before signing a two-year $68.6 million deal. The prevailing thought was that Daryl Morey convinced Harden to take a $14 million pay cut to help bring in P.J. Tucker, Daniel House, De’Anthony Melton and others.
After one season playing for $33 million, Harden likely expected a new and long-term max deal. The $200 million max contract was easily within range. He likely would have been given roughly $60 million in one season.
Morey and the Sixers, though, may no longer want that, forcing “The Beard” to opt into the final year of his contract and demand a trade. The former MVP called the Philadelphia 76ers’ president of basketball operations a “liar” in front of Chinese fans about a week ago. Harden insisted that he made that comment after Morey reneged on his promise to trade him.
James Harden was penalized $100K by the NBA, not for calling Morey a liar, but for implying that he will not honor his contract unless he's traded. So far, Harden has denied that a wink-wink deal between him and the team was done in 2022.
If the NBA conducts further investigation and finds that an under-the-table agreement happened, the Philadelphia 76ers could suffer big.
Will James Harden get another max deal again?
Any team that acquires James Harden via a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers can’t extend him. He will become an unrestricted free agent after the final year of his contract is played out. It’s for this reason that the trade market for “The Beard” has been lukewarm.
Whichever team Harden plays for will not be in a hurry to give him a max deal. He will be 34 in a few days. The former Houston Rockets superstar has suffered many injuries over the years and isn’t known for consistently staying in shape. Some have even insisted that his explosiveness and shiftiness are already not what they once were.
Nevertheless, James Harden will have value. He led the NBA in assists last season and could have made the All-Star team. It will not help that he had another disappointing postseason, particularly in Games 6 and 7 against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Harden has not been able to shake off the “choker” tag in the playoffs.
Depending on how a team sees and values him, the seven-time All-NBA player may not get another max contract in his career again.