Getty James Harden and Kevin Durant
The Phoenix Suns have already begun making changes after being eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Semifinals. Head coach Monty Williams was relieved of his duties earlier in May, and the consensus thought around the league is that more changes could be coming.
With the free agency period on the horizon, there have been several reports that 10-time All-Star shooting guard James Harden could be interested in joining the Suns next season, which was much to the chagrin of NBA radio personality Colin Cowherd. Cowherd called out Suns’ star Kevin Durant for being “erradic.”
“Put a kibosh to this KD. This is a bad look. You’re becoming weird and eccentric. It’s OK to make poor decisions. LeBron James, with great basketball IQ, has made poor decisions. Remember he wanted Shabazz Napier drafted? He wanted Westbrook to go to the Lakers. But LeBron moves off bad decisions and then generally doesn’t do them again,” Cowherd said during a recent episode of “The Herd” on FS1.
“James Harden? After Kyrie and Harden? You talk about a bad sequel…You’re erratic. I mean, it’s one thing to not be able to work with Steve Kerr and Kenny Atkinson, and Monty Williams. It’s another to double down on James Harden. End this thing today. It’s a bad look. You look unpredictable. And again, I like my artist, just not the crazy ones.”
James Harden Wants a ‘Competitive Roster’
Harden has gone from a perennial superstar to being on the verge of becoming a journeyman. He was traded from the Houston Rockets to the Brooklyn Nets in 2021 to join Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. But in 2021, when Irving refused to get the mandated COVID-19 vaccine, the Nets plummeted in the standings, which caused Harden to request a trade to the Philadelphia 76ers.
But Harden’s run in Philly has turned out to be just as disappointing as he has failed to advance past the second round in consecutive playoff appearances.
Initially, there had been rumblings that if Harden left the Sixers during the summer free agency period, he would return to the Rockets, where he won the lone MVP award of his career. But with “The Beard” seeking that elusive first NBA championship, Chris B. Haynes of Bleacher Report says that Harden is prioritizing winning over everything else at this point of his career.
“The Houston Rockets have long been a rumored destination, but sources say Harden will only entertain suitors that present a competitive roster and the basketball freedom for the star to be himself, sources say,” Haynes writes via Bleacher Report.
“At the moment, the Sixers are the only logical option, coming off a third-place finish in the Eastern Conference in the regular season. But the dynamic in Philadelphia will undoubtedly change next season, considering the Sixers have to find the right coach after dismissing Doc Rivers.”
James Harden, Suns Rumors Could Be a Decoy
But as most NBA fans know, the NBA free agency period is a game of cat and mouse with all parties jockeying for position everyone is looking for any kind of leverage to use to their advantage. Dan Favale of Bleacher Report suggests that the ramblings of the Suns being a potential destination for Harden could be nothing more than a negotiation tactic.
“Is it purely a coincidence that the 33-year-old ended the first round touting the importance of his financial and functional sacrifice only to exit the second round in search of “basketball freedom?” Who’s to say, really?” Favale writes.
“This could all be a negotiating ploy. Harden took $15-plus million less to help the Sixers maximize flexibility last summer. This might be his way of telling team president Daryl Morey “Max or nothing. “If that’s the case, Harden’s leverage is diluted by his own leanings. Most of this year’s cap-space squads won’t field a “competitive roster” without overhaul. Then again, sign-and-trades are always a possibility.”