James Harden continues to do James Harden things…
by John Kincade
Drama follows him everywhere he goes. Unfortunately, most of it is self inflicted. Whether he was unhappy in Houston and desired to chase a championship or the very uninspired performance in Brooklyn that led him to the 76ers doorstep, Harden always has something going on. Is he banged up? That was the excuse a few years ago. Is he happy? That’s the latest storyline to take center stage. Harden once again has his eye on the door.
James Harden is a fantastic talent and brings a lot of talent to the table. What about leadership? What about ever feeling comfortable and having your feet firmly in today? For Harden that seems to be the biggest issue. Now we are hearing about James playing footsie with the Rockets again, now being reported by three different media outlets. It’s no longer just a whisper and can’t be passed off as a baseless rumor. Sixers fans are approaching going right back to where they started.
I’m personally done with James Harden. I’ll root for him to have great success and for this team to finally get out of the second round for the first time in 22 seasons. The 76ers have to be tiring of this activity. They do everything possible to accommodate James and he still apparently isn’t happy. Houston can give him all the cash that he desires. They can also allow James to have a say in building a team around him. Philadelphia will always be Team Embiid and that could be the issue here.
When he arrived I thought that playing with a talent like Joel was supposed to be the desired outcome. He wanted to ring chase with a dominant big man. There was an energy about the Harden arrival that seems to have fizzled. What does James Harden having a reported exit plan tell me? First of all, I’m not in that locker room so who knows. I’ll surmise that James either isn’t that happy here or believes he isn’t going to realize that goal of a championship here and wants to formulate a Plan B.
This is the 76ers franchise last gasp at turning the “process” into something tangible. On a good night they look dominant and their potential seems endless. Many nights they appear to be listless and sleep walking through the schedule. That isn’t the mark of a championship team. There is no consistency and from game to game the efforts can be troubling. That could be a by product of the team knowing that a desire to stay united isn’t in place.
Right now, there isn’t a reason to bet on this club making a deep playoff run. The Phillies proved to us that a late season stumble doesn’t mean that a little playoff magic can’t be created. It’s about all that the 76ers can hope for now. I just know that I’m out on committing to support of James Harden. It seems as if his commitment to this franchise just isn’t in the cards.
