Kevin Durant wasn’t happy with Harden’s poor work ethic and bad shape. Harden didn’t like being held accountable, so he forced a trade to reunite with Daryl Morey, who’s never going to call him out.

The outcome was as predictable as it was unfortunate. Harden took just two shots in the second half of a close-out game and went scoreless. He’s just not that player anymore, and he’s not getting any younger.

NBA News: Amar’e Stoudemire Says Sixers Shouldn’t Give James Harden A Max Deal

Harden is 32 years old and eligible to sign a max contract worth $270 million. That’s why former NBA star Amar’e Stoudemire urged the Sixers to stay away from him and give him that kind of money:

“If I’m the owner of the Sixers, I cannot commit to giving him a max deal,” Stoudemire said on ESPN’s Get Up. “I just don’t see the dedication that I would need to see from my top 75 player. You have to be able to have a certain level of determination and focus on being the best player you can possibly be and also be there for your teammates when they need you the most… If he’s not capable of doing that as a max player, I’m not going to be willing to now give you a max contract if you’re not showing me that you can handle the situation.”

Stoudemire Rips Harden’s Poor Work Ethic

Stoudemire was a part of the Nets’ coaching staff during Harden’s brief tenure with the team. He saw how he handled his body and got ready for the season. Needless to say, he didn’t like it one bit:

“I don’t think he is this season capable of being that type of player,” Stoudemire added. “I think, not being in top shape, not taking your body serious, and not really being able to focus in on that in the off-season, and getting yourself prepared through training camp and through the regular season to get to this point… It takes a lot of determination for that to happen. And I don’t think that happened for him this past off-season, and throughout this season.”

Harden could’ve been a legend, and chances are he’ll be a Hall of Famer anyway. But he doesn’t have a legacy or even a fanbase at this point in his career. He never took himself seriously, so why should the rest of us do it?

More recently, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant were at the top of younger fans’ debate, as they were the most dominant players of the past two decades, and those who grew up rooting for them believe that they’re the two best to ever do it.

And recently, former All-Star Amar’e Stoudemire – who had the chance to play against both in their primes – weighed in on the debate and said that Kobe was actually a tougher player to guard than LeBron.

Amar’e Stoudemire Says Kobe Had No Weaknesses

“Kobe has a different intellect with the game. Well, he talked whenever you talked to him, he was all business and it was, like, strategic. LeBron was probably harder to play against because he was also more explosive. Actually, I take that back, Kobe’s harder to guard because Kobe, there was no weaknesses.” Stoudemire said, as quoted by Essentially Sports.

While Stoudemire was never much of a defender, he’s got a bit of a point right there. There simply was no way of stopping prime Kobe Bryant, especially considering how obsessively he worked on his craft.

That’s not a diss to LeBron James whatsoever, who I personally believe is the most complete player of all time, but Kobe’s scoring ability is something not many players could ever match or surpass.

At the end of the day, we shouldn’t even be talking about the greatest player of all time because we’ve seen that many legends, that we can’t pick just one of them. But at least in that aspect of the game, I’d also lean towards Kobe Bean Bryant.

What do you guys think?