"This man took a huge pay cut for Morey to do nothing special", "$68.6 million after dropping 11 points in an elimination game? Rip Sixers" - Fans share hilarious reactions to James Harden's contract extension
James Harden displayed his commitment to winning a championship with the Philadelphia 76ers when he voiced his choice to take a pay cut this season. With the superstar agreeing to a two-year deal, fans have shared mixed reactions to the move.
Heading into the offseason, James Harden had a huge decision to make. The 32-year-old superstar was due to opt-in to his contract, which would take a massive toll on Philadelphia's cap space. This would virtually prevent them from pursuing valuable players going forward.
However, Harden made a rather bold move by agreeing to take a pay cut to facilitate building a stronger roster. As reported by Adrian Wojnarowski, Harden agreed to a two-year $68.6 million deal with the 76ers.
Free agent James Harden has agreed on a two-year, $68.6M deal, including a player option, to return to the 76ers, sources tell ESPN.
This decision has given Philadelphia a lot of freedom with regards to their cap space. While the guard's decision has helped the team, fans haven't been as kind.
Offering hilarious responses to Harden's decision, here are some of the best reactions from Twitter:
@wojespn Respect. Everyone else wants money. This dude really wanna win
@LOVELAKESHOW @wojespn Bruh he’s making 34 mill a year this is not a pay cut
@wojespn Wasn’t he taking a pay cut LMAOOOOOO
@wojespn I thought he was taking a pay cut https://t.co/9QrTYgBeJl
@wojespn This man took a huge pay cut for morey to do nothing special 😭
@wojespn W the Sixers are winning it all
@wojespn 68 million and Harden out here acting like he took a massive pay cut
@wojespn Dude says he was getting what’s leftover then got $34 mil, the hell u doing Morey lol
@wojespn JAMES HARDEN IS THE BEST TEAMMATE IN THE LEAGUE ITS OFFICIALLY OFFICIAL
@wojespn $68.6M after dropping 11 points in an elimination game??? Rip Sixers
@wojespn HAHAHAHA how is this less?
@wojespn Holy overpay
@wojespn Mans declined a 46 million option to resign for 33 million to help his team win and sign pj tucker. I’m not even a harden fan but that’s big respect. Still big money but a lot of players ain’t sacrificing that kinda money for good of the team
@wojespn Philly Strippers seeing Harden take a big paycut https://t.co/1pgX4VoIaN
@wojespn all season long 😎 https://t.co/CePz9cbseJ
Fans have displayed a rather mixed set of reactions to the deal. With some applauding Harden for taking a pay cut to support the team, others have slandered him for being overpaid.
Harden was due to earn north of $47 million this season had he opted-in to his contract. In this regard, the $33 million he will earn frees up a lot of money for Philadelphia, hence aiding their roster to build strategies.
How has James Harden's decision helped the Philadelphia 76ers?
Harden joined the Philadelphia 76ers midway through last season. After being traded from the Brooklyn Nets as part of a blockbuster deal, the superstar guard was paired with Joel Embiid in Philadelphia.
Although the duo looked like one of the most potent combos in the league, the team as a whole failed to accomplish much success. A lot of this could be attributed to their roster strength.
To resolve this issue, Harden made a bold decision to take a pay cut instead of opting-in to his contract. With roughly $14 million to play around with, the 76ers have already made some interesting moves.
A relatively noteworthy signing was that of PJ Tucker. With the pay cut in full effect, Philadelphia could use the mid-level exception to pick up Tucker. This also allowed them to pick up Danuel House Jr. on the bi-annual exception.
Harden declining the $47.4M player option for the 2022-2023 season allowed the Sixers to use the full mid-level exception on free agent PJ Tucker and the bi-annual exception to sign Danuel House.
Both of these players were former teammates of Harden at the Houston Rockets. Tucker spent last season with the Miami Heat as a solid 3-and-D specialist. Similarly, House was a valuable piece in the Rockets' system when it was run by Harden.
The two moves have already done a lot to improve Philadelphia's roster depth. While their big-man rotation continues to be a bit of a concern, the 76ers have started moving the right direction.