Harden missed an All-Star due to gambling? Rivers has been criticized many times in response to ESPN: lies

This article was compiled from: ESPN

Written by Ramona Shelburne

原标题：Promises, sacrifices and betrayal: Inside the feud between James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers

Commitment, sacrifice and betrayal, what exactly happened between Harden and the 76ers? ESPN star Ramona Shelburne wrote an article revealing the secret, which contains many previously unknown details and insiders -

Turning the clock back to January, when Harden helped the 76ers beat the Lakers and Clippers on the road, the 76ers were getting better, and when he walked out of the arena, Harden confidently said: "This team is definitely my best chance to win a championship." Embiid praised Harden for "making the game easy." The 76ers at the time were in the honeymoon period. The two stars appreciate each other and recognize each other's roles.

Harden came to Philadelphia with the trust that 76ers general manager Morey can help him return to his best days in the city, this time with an MVP center and a championship coach by his side. After his first season in Philadelphia, Harden decided to take a $14 million pay cut so the team could sign Tucker. "You have to make sacrifices to get to where you've never been," Harden said at the time.

In fact, Harden is also very shrewd. According to sources, the reason why Harden is willing to "sacrifice" is also because the 76ers were unwilling to offer him a new maximum salary contract worth more than $270 million based on Harden's performance after the mid-season trade, and they are still evaluating Harden, just as Harden evaluated the Nets a year ago, when the Nets gave Harden a maximum salary offer, but Harden said they wanted to see how things go.

Harden's pay cut was a sacrifice, but he didn't realize that no one cared about his sacrifice when everything fell apart.

Missed opportunities to be selected as All-Stars

The first suggestion that Harden's "sacrifice" was not appreciated, let alone rewarded, was at the end of January. He wasn't selected as an All-Star at the time. According to sources, Harden, who had previously been selected as an All-Star 10 times in a row, was frustrated by the snub.

To make matters worse, his former Nets teammates Durant and Irving were both selected as starters, while Harden finished fourth among Eastern Conference guards, behind Irving, Mitchell and Jaylen Brown.

However, sources said that NBA commissioner Xiao Huaben is ready to appoint Harden to replace the injured Durant and be selected as an All-Star, the requirements are simple, Harden promised that he would participate in the All-Star. Unexpectedly, Harden was pouting and gambling at the time and did not reply to Xiao Hua for several days. When Harden said he was willing to accept the invitation, Shaw had already changed his mind, opting to make Raptors star Siakam a replacement.

The 76ers have spoken out for Harden, but they are also cautious. On the one hand, they know that Harden needs to be treated like a superstar in order to play like a superstar. On the other hand, they also believe that Harden has never won a championship the way he currently plays, nor has he expressed a desire to accept a coach like Rivers. Everything took time and trust, but it didn't happen.

Reeves has repeatedly criticized Harden

In mid-December, the 76ers lost to the Rockets in double-overtime, and Rivers criticized Harden's last three shots in regular time, according to sources. That's not to say Rivers didn't trust Harden to make those shots, he allowed Harden to dominate the offense, but the problem was that in that game, the Rockets couldn't get Embiid (39 points) all night, and Harden's own hands weren't good (4-of-19).

It is reported that when questioned by Rivers during the video conference, Harden had objected, saying that he could not pass the ball to Embiid at that time. The conflict between Harden and Rivers continued throughout the season.

The 76ers lost 99-101 at home to the Heat on Feb. 27, after losing 107-110 to another archrival, the Celtics, two nights earlier. According to the schedule, they will travel to Miami to face the Heat again. Sources said Harden did not travel to Miami with the team, but traveled alone to enjoy the nightlife. That's not uncommon in the NBA, and it's especially true for Harden, but Rivers and several players disagree.

A few days later, Rivers raised the issue at a team meeting, and he also mentioned several players who had expressed concern about Harden's behavior. A team source said the whole incident was "uncomfortable". Even if the players named agreed with Rivers' message to Harden, they were embarrassed.

The Rockets lost interest in Harden after hiring Uduka

Two days after losing to the Green Army in the playoffs, Rivers was fired by the team, officially because he was again out on the team's championship, but sources revealed that the unofficial reason was that the team knew Harden didn't want to play for Rivers anymore.

Morey made it clear that a contract extension with Harden is a priority for the 76ers, but sources said there are differences of opinion within the team about how much of a contract to offer Harden and how long it should last. Should he be worth about the same as the Lone Ranger's 3-year contract extension to Irving's 126 million?

If Harden rejects the $35.6 million player option and becomes a free agent, he qualifies for a four-year, $210 million contract that he had expected to get, especially given last summer's pay cut, but Harden didn't see such a contract in front of him. After hiring Uduka as head coach in late April, the Rockets' interest in re-signing Harden has gradually cooled, according to sources. Uduka is trying to build a new culture in Hugh, not going back to the past, and he wants defensive-minded players like Dillon and Dillon López.

With no other strong suitors, Harden was in trouble. His best chip would have been Morey, because Morey saw Harden's talent early on and gave him a lot of power during his career in the offtown, and Harden signed three contracts during his time with Morey, even including one of the largest contracts in the NBA at the time.

But at the crucial juncture, Morey did not answer the call from Harden's camp. A source close to Harden revealed that Harden believes he has been betrayed. Instead of waiting for any offer from Morey and the 76ers after the free agency market opens on July 1, Harden decided to execute the $35.6 million player option by the June 30 deadline and then apply for a trade.

According to sources, the 76ers were shocked by Harden's decision, telling Harden that they remained estranged because they had just been fined for illegal signing by the NBA, had to play by the rules, and were not unwilling to renew his contract. But Harden doesn't want to look back, with another source close to Harden saying: "When Harden feels wronged, he becomes very stubborn. ”

Embiid has been in touch with Harden

Over the next few weeks, Morey stopped sticking to Harden and began to try to trade him, and he held preliminary trade talks with the Clippers and Knicks.

But by mid-August, all the teams interested in Harden had no intention of satisfying Morey's quest for rewards, and on August 12, Woj reported that Philadelphia had decided to end negotiations with the Clippers and expected Harden to report to training camp. According to sources, Harden was very upset when he knew about the team's decision before Woj reported.

On August 14, Harden announced at an event in China: "Morey is a liar and I will never play for the team he belongs to again." The NBA confirmed that Harden's remarks were related to the trade and fined him $100,000 for it. Since then, nothing has been resolved.

76ers owner Josh Harris said in an interview that the team wants to meet Harden's requirements, but must also focus on the big picture to ensure the 76ers remain a competitive team. Morey even said in a radio interview that "we'd all be excited" if Harden withdrew the trade request.

According to sources, Embiid also said that he can get through the current situation with Harden. But it remains to be seen how long he is thought he can be guaranteed. The same is true of Maxi, both of whom have been in private contact with Harden, and Embiid invited Harden to his wedding in July. (Note: Harden did not show up, but went to the concert with Tucker.)

The reality that Harden has to face is that he once received top salary offers in both the Rockets and Nets, but he didn't accept it, he wanted to hit the championship, and now his value is declining year by year, which he once couldn't accept.

Editor's note: Harden himself has responded to ESPN's report with only one word: Lies