James Harden is trying everything to force a trade away from the Houston Rockets.
Despite the fact that he has made his desire play elsewhere abundantly clear, James harden remains on the Houston Rockets, a fact that clearly still perturbs him. Rather than do the usual trade demand stuff, like going public with his request, Harden has resorted to insubordination and violence, according to the latest buzz at Rockets practice.
Per Shams Charania of The Athletic, Harden got into a verbal confrontation with some of his Rockets teammates, even throwing a basketball at rookie Jae’Sean Tate. This incident will make some wonder if Harden could ever truly assimilate back into this Rockets team if his trade wish is not granted.
James Harden has no interest in helping the Rockets next season
Harden has led the league in scoring in each of the last three seasons, but that run might come to an end after Stephen Silas replaced Mike D’Antoni, who created an offense that orbited entirely around him.
While Harden has reportedly been interested in a trade to the Brooklyn Nets in order to pair up with D’Antoni, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn’s unwillingness to make that move and inability to satisfy Houston’s asking price is making that trade look less likely by the day. Miami and Philadelphia have also been mentioned as landing spots, with the 76ers holding an edge given the presence of Daryl Morey in their front office, but nothing has really materialized on those fronts either.
After reports emerged that Harden had essentially unchecked power within that organization, it’s easy to see why he has been heaving in this fashion over the last few weeks. Even if Rafael Stone, who has been adamant that he will not trade Harden unless he gets a superstar in return, doesn’t get his asking price met, he risks this season getting even more explosive and destructive if an unmotivated Harden hangs around.