James Harden is not worried about the details of his franchise divorce, as he returns to Houston to face the Rockets on Wednesday night (19:30 ET on ESPN) for the first time since his trading request was finally accepted.
“They showed me crazy love and respect and I’m just excited to play in front of those fans,” Harden said.
Harden apologized for “how it went down” in his last months with the Rockets, when he was dealing with a transaction, but Harden said he did not regret the actions that led to his desired result. He got what he wanted – a chance to play again for a competitor, especially the Brooklyn Nets – and took full advantage of the opportunity.
Harden is happy and plays at the MVP level for the best team in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, times are tough for the Rockets, who are devastated by injuries and going on a losing streak of 12 games entering the return of their former MVP.
A review of the one-month saga that preceded Harden’s departure from Houston:
“It’s very, very frustrating, especially the amount of work I’ve put in individually. But I’m going to keep going. I’m going to go on and on until I can go on. I feel like we have to keep trying to give up. “Let’s try to grow and put the right pieces around me and Russ to get where we want to go.”
– Harden, after the Rockets were eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in a series of five games in the second round
The drastic renovations of the Rockets list have not led to improved results.
The Houston reception, at Harden’s urging, overturned Chris Paul and a first-round pick for his friend, former teammate and recent MVP teammate Russell Westbrook. Largely to host Westbrook, the Rockets made an unprecedented commitment to the small ball, delivering the great Clint Capela into a four-team deal that landed Robert Covington, suddenly turning 6-foot PJ Tucker in the shortest starting center of the league of several centimeters.
For a while, the Rockets’ wild experiment worked. Houston won 10 of 12 games over a month, a stretch highlighted by a victory over the Lakers on the road, fueling hopes that unconventional Rockets could indeed fight.
Then the Rockets ran out of gas, losing four of their last five games before the COVID-19 pandemic stopped the season. They never really returned, with Harden and Westbrook reporting late to the balloon in Orlando, Florida, after contracting the coronavirus, and then Westbrook strained his quadriceps during the sowing program.
Houston easily avoided the humiliation of losing to Paul’s Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round, surviving Game 7 by two points due to the late block of Harden that saved the series. They defeated the Lakers in the opening of the second round, but were dominated in the rest of the series, getting 23 points in the elimination game.
The main subjects of Harden’s post-game interview were the uncertain status of coach Mike D’Antoni, with his expired contract – terminated the next morning when D’Antoni announced he would move from Houston – and the power to stay in style. unusual of the Rockets. . The last question Harden asked was if he was willing to adjust his game, probably playing the ball more.
“To answer your question, yes, I’m willing to do whatever it takes,” Harden said. “Especially to win.”
“For the last eight years or so, our goal has been to win a championship because we had James Harden. We still have James Harden. Our goal, however, is to win a championship, and if you have it, you’re halfway there. It’s up to me and Stephen [Silas] and the whole team to discover the rest of the whole, but the key piece is there. “
– Rafael Stone, in his first press conference since being promoted to Rockets general manager
Daryl Morey, CEO whose 2012 transaction for Harden revived the Rockets franchise, announced his resignation in October. Morey mentioned his desire to spend time with his family – and was hired as president of Philadelphia 76ers basketball operations 13 days later.
Several sources in the Houston organization strongly believe that Morey made a precautionary decision, leaving in large part because he anticipated that Harden would like to leave, beginning a period of reconstruction for the Rockets. According to sources, Morey expressed concern inside the balloon that he could not “keep James happy” due to the lack of selections to use as commercial fodder to upgrade in off-season list.
Harden’s happiness, or lack thereof, was Stone’s problem after the longtime Rockets executive was promoted to Morey. But just getting communication with Harden was difficult for Stone and the Houston office, a factor that delayed the search for coaches that eventually ended with the hiring of Silas, a longtime NBA assistant who was a finalist when Houston at hired D’Antoni for four years. before.
In early November, the Rockets privately reconciled with the fact that the Harden-Westbrook pairing had disappeared because friends no longer wanted to play together. This was problematic, given the high price the Rockets paid in the Westbrook transaction last summer, but Houston could look for a Westbrook transaction.
As long as the Rockets got stronger, they had hope. They just needed to convince Harden, who insisted annually for the off-season urgency in search of a title, of this.
1:18
Missile head coach Stephen Silas discusses James Harden’s current condition and how he focuses on coaching the team.
“I have no clarity about the message. What is the reasoning, is on him. He is the one who can explain why or why he is not here. For me to make inferences and think about possibilities is not real for me. What is real is that he is not here and has a reason, but he is going to tell anyone what his reason is. “
– Silas, on the second day of the Rockets training camp
A few weeks before the camp opened, a senior Rockets source told ESPN that the team was “willing to feel uncomfortable,” noting that the main office felt no urgency to market Harden and Westbrook before the season began, despite the unhappiness. celebrities. not to be pressured to treat them with money on the dollar.
Westbrook finally got his wish a few days before the camp opened, while the Rockets rushed when the Washington Wizards offered a protected selection in the first round along with goalie John Wall.
After avoiding Toyota Center when the rest of the NBA players trained individually at the team’s facilities, Harden was absent from the start of the training camp, instead of attending the birthday party of Atlanta rapper Lil Baby, coveting his friend with extravagant gifts and posting pictures of the maskless business on Instagram.
From there, Harden left for Las Vegas. The Rockets attributed Harden’s absence to the first team’s training to the league’s health and safety protocols, but Silas acknowledged the next day that it was an obstacle.
“As for the schedule, there is no schedule as far as I know. And it’s an obstacle,” Silas said. “You want your best player to be here. And there’s a short window. It’s a failure. I have to be honest and understand that this is a failure that doesn’t have one of the best NBA players here.”
Harden’s late arrival assured him that he would miss virtually the entire camp, as he had to test negative for coronavirus for six consecutive days before being allowed to join the team’s activities. Harden’s explanation for trips to Atlanta and Vegas: “I was just training.” Harden is convinced that the Rockets archive is serious about his commercial application. His priority was to execute an exit strategy.
“We are not good enough. Chemistry, talent, just everything … I like this city. I did literally everything I could. I mean, this situation is crazy. It’s something I don’t do. I think it can be repaired. “
– Harden, after a Jan. 12 loss to the Lakers, his last game with the Rockets uniform
Harden, well aware that the Rockets’ trade talks with the Nets and 76ers have intensified, delivered what was a farewell speech during his virtual press conference after Houston’s fourth loss in five Games.
It came out of the Toyota Center as a rocket for the last time.
Harden was told to stay home instead of coming to training the next day, as Stone put the finishing touches on a four-team deal that sent Harden to Brooklyn and gave the Rockets four first-round picks, four swaps. In the first round, former All-Star shooting guard Victor Oladipo and a few other players to complete the salary.
Houston’s asking price for Harden was a cornerstone of the young franchise and a historic election package. The Rockets came to compromise, choosing the Nets offer, titled a package of selections over the proposal of the 76ers, with Ben Simmons as the centerpiece, but significantly fewer design assets. And that closed the chapter on Harden’s tenure in Houston, which featured eight seasons of individual brilliance, but always stayed out of the NBA Finals.
“I thought I would never leave that franchise. I thought I would be in Houston, obviously, for the rest of my career. Things happened. I have different goals and I saw a different vision for myself and my career and my family.” .
“Harden, a few days before he returned to Houston.”
Harden has walked since his arrival in Brooklyn, following his promise to match up with Nets stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, preventing skeptics from wondering how three of the best scorers of this generation could share a single ball.
Harden adjusted their game to focus more on facilitation. Harden has always been an elite passer – winning the NBA assistant title in 2016-17 before claiming the league’s top scorer in the next three seasons – but that part of his game has flourished especially with the Nets. He averaged 11.3 assists in 22 games with Brooklyn and officially became the guardian of Irving’s statement of roles on the backfield during a practice last month.
Harden is still a top scorer, but has the luxury of being more selective with his Nets shot. He has an average of 25.3 points per game – which would be Harden’s lowest season since he was Thunder’s sixth man – but with the best career clips in the field goal percentage (.490 ), 3-point percentage (.419) and effective target percentage (.589).
Harden also drops 8.7 rebounds per game for Brooklyn, which would be another career. He has seven triple-doubles for the Nets, who have won nine of their last 10 games, despite Durant’s prolonged absence due to a hamstring strain.
Yes, Harden did everything he could to win. For him, leaving Houston meant.