James Harden wants out of the Philadelphia 76ers only a year and a half after leaving the Brooklyn Nets. The Beard doesn’t seem to care if Joel Embiid or Patrick Beverley are reporting for next season, he made up his mind.
The veteran guard opted into a player option this summer but only to get traded, after the Sixers didn’t offer him a max contract extension. Recently, he made it clear his relationship with Daryl Morey is broken.
The situation may be uncomfortable for those on the team who want Harden to stay. Pat Bev was one of the players who asked the guard to reconsider his decision, but now there’s not much he can do.
Patrick Beverley understands ‘both sides’ on Sixers-Harden drama
“Obviously, he’s entitled to feel any way loss when he’s promised things, and on Daryl’s behalf, no matter what, his job is to get the best product for as cheap as possible. That’s his job. That’s the name of the game. You’re a GM, you’re a president, you’re trying to get a bunch of great product and a bunch of great product for at least as possible, and I think we’re in the middle of that right now. Obviously, it’s not a good look media-wise, organizational-wise,” Beverley said on his The Pat Bev Podcast with Rone, via Sixers Wire.
“Obviously, a guy like Nick Nurse who’s just starting out coaching, it’s not a good setup for him…it’s hard to mix business with friends because someone’s gonna get hurt down the line if things aren’t going your way and you don’t want that to be to a point where you guys don’t even have a relationship anymore.
“So I understand both sides. I definitely understand both sides. Saying all these players in this league, you get a ton of money. Obviously, you understand the player side, because I’m a player. I’m always gonna be on the player side and also doing business with friends too. I’ve done business with friends that haven’t worked out to my liking and then you have to end relationships because of that. So, I understand both sides. It’s just an unfortunate situation.”
Beverley understands Harden has made up his mind and there’s no turning back on this situation. Now, it may be just a matter of time before the Sixers find a team that meets their asking price for Harden.
