(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Finally, James Harden is a member of the Los Angeles Clippers.
While this move seemed inevitable, both teams could’ve saved a lot of time and drama months ago, as there were no other takers for the former MVP, and he didn’t want to play for another team, either.
However, neither Daryl Morey of the Philadelphia 76ers nor Lawrence Frank of the Clippers were able to strike a deal, most likely because of the former’s desire to hold on to his favorite player at all costs.
That’s why, according to Shams Charania, it required the team owners to get involved to iron things out and get a deal done.
On a critical call Monday that helped iron out the 76ers-Clippers James Harden blockbuster after four months of negotiations: pic.twitter.com/uGTeCWlWMb
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 31, 2023
Apparently, Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and Philadelphia owner Josh Harris got on the phone to work out a deal, which is something neither of their subordinates could do.
Charania adds that the Sixers felt comfortable letting go of Harden after watching Tyrese Maxey’s stellar play to start the season, as even though Harden had reported back with the team, it was simply never going to work.
As for the Clippers, they’ve now gone all-in to win an NBA championship right now, pairing Harden with the likes of Russell Westbrook, Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard.
The Sixers now have several valuable and tradable assets to try and get another star to pair with Joel Embiid and Maxey.
Hopefully, for Harris, Morey will be able to do the job he gets paid to do, and he won’t have to micromanage anymore.
There are levels to everything, and both Harris and Ballmer surely know a thing or two about business deals.
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