Don’t expect James Harden and Daryl Morey to break bread anytime soon.
Harden didn’t sugarcoat things Wednesday when asked about his fractured relationship with Philadelphia’s president of basketball operations following the Clippers’ 108-107 win over the Sixers at Wells Fargo Arena, where the Los Angeles guard was booed every time he touched the ball.
“Do you think some day you and Daryl [Morey] patch things up?” one reporter asked Harden, who didn’t hesitate.
“No. Hell no,” the 34-year-old said with a poker face.
“For me, personally, I feel like I did everything that I needed to do in the sense of the year prior, taking myself off the max (contract) to help the team get better, for this city. You know what I mean?” Harden told reporters. “And for myself, obviously, to win a championship. Things didn’t work out. I wanted to get paid. They weren’t talking. So it is what it is. Then you move on. Everybody’s happy. Life is good.”
When asked if he has a relationship with Sixers star Joel Embiid, Harden said, “No.”
The former NBA MVP spent one and a half seasons with Philadelphia after a blockbuster trade with the Brooklyn Nets for Ben Simmons at the 2022 deadline.
Harden wanted out of Philadelphia last summer because he was unhappy with Morey over the lack of a long-term max contract offer, which he felt he was due after sacrificing for the team.
The 10-time All-Star took a $15 million pay cut in July 2022 and declined his $47.4 million player option with the 76ers to sign a $33 million deal for the 2022-23 campaign.
Harden called Morey a “liar” while at a press event last August shortly after the Sixers ended trade talks with him.
It came as a surprise to some, as Harden and Morey have a history.
The Adidas athlete and NBA exec spent eight seasons together with the Rockets after Morey brought Harden to Houston via trade from Oklahoma City in 2012.
“I think I did a lot,” Harden said of his time in Philadelphia. “I had a very impactful, positive impact on a lot of people. I’m grateful for those relationships. I’m grateful for the opportunity and things like that. Those are things that I can cherish and move on with. Everything else doesn’t matter.”
Harden was unsure why he received the cold welcome although it did not surprise him.
“I really don’t know what it’s about, but I expected it,” said Harden, who finished with 16 points, 14 assists and five rebounds. “So, it is what it is. I don’t even know why they were booing. You can ask them. I don’t know why they were booing.”
Wednesday’s game was a dogfight until the end.
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse went ballistic on the referees after a missed foul call on Philadelphia’s final possession with the chance to win the game.
With 5.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter and Los Angeles up by one point, the 76ers got the ball after a tipoff from Los Angeles — and Sixers guard Kelly Oubre Jr. went to the hoop on a potential game-winning drive.
Oubre failed to get off a shot when he was blocked by Clippers forwards Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, who appeared to foul him on the play but was not called by officials.
Oubre also had some choice words for the referees, and appeared to repeatedly yell, “You are a b—h.”
He also appeared to flip off the referees at the end of the game.
Officials later admitted they missed the foul call on Philadelphia’s final possession.
The Sixers (39-34) are in the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference and currently would be in the play-in tournament. The Clippers (45-27) occupy the No. 4 spot in the Western Conference.
The Clippers visit the Magic, while the Sixers head to Cleveland to take on the Cavaliers on Friday.
