The Philadelphia 76ers’ drama-filled summer continued yesterday with James Harden calling Daryl Morey a liar in front of a room full of people at an Adidas event in China. 

Former teammate Danny Green spoke about Harden’s comments during yesterday’s appearance on ESPN’s The Jump, saying he was “shocked” to hear a star player like Harden call out his team’s president by name. 

You can watch that video right here >>

Green did however, confirm that he would “always side with the player” in these types of situations. 

Danny Green on James Harden’s comments on Daryl Morey (Video Below)

There’s not many things that shock me in this world, but to see a star player like James Harden, call out by name, Daryl Morey and speaking from his own mouth. You usually hear from sources, but to him speak. You can tell he’s agitated; he’s upset. It was shocking. I was very shocked by it, but I do see both sides. As a player, I’m always gonna side with the player. Not just because I’m a player, but I also don’t think he’s wrong. If he was promised something, I think you need to come through with that promise. But I see the other side of it with Daryl Morey. I understand it’s a business.

GMs, they make a lot of decisions quickly in the heat of the moment and your mind is going to change, the emotion is gonna change at different times, and maybe his hands are tied to this. Maybe he’s not able to offer James the extension that he wants.

So I understand Daryl. I understand James. Do I think this can be something that can be amended? Probably not, but Daryl is going to have to meet him at least halfway to try to bring him into camp. I also don’t see James as a guy that’s going to come into camp and dog it. He’s either not gonna play, or when he does play, I see him being the professional that he is and giving his best, but I don’t see him doing that. I think he’s gonna try to hold out.– Danny Green on The Jump 

To his credit, Green also said that he understood Morey’s side of the matter, bringing up the fact that Morey’s “hands are tied” by the ownership group, which likely has the final say in such contract decisions. 

To recap, James harden signed a 2-year, $68.6 million contract with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2022 that included a player option in the second year. After initially stating that he would test free agency, Harden ultimately opted in to his player option worth $35.6 million. 

While Harden wasn’t really specific on what Daryl Morey lied about, you would have to assume that he was talking about the storyline where Morey told Harden taking a “pay cut” when re-signing with the Sixers last season, that would result in a future max contract following 2023 to remain in Philadelphia.

That did happen. Harden took a $15 million pay cut and at the time that raised eyebrows across the league as to whether other money was going to him “under the table” to make up for it. 

Here’s why none of that matters 

James Harden was given a 2-year contract to be paired with Joel Embiid with the goal of getting the Philadelphia 76ers past the second round of the playoffs and ultimately, reaching the finals and yes, winning an NBA Championship. 

That did not happen. 

Because that didn’t happen, James Harden did not meet expectations here in Philadelphia. There was a significant decline in his performance on the basketball court and in the playoffs, outside of 2-3 games, Harden simply did not show up when the team needed him most. 

There is absolutely no way that Morey or the Sixers organization could then give Harden any type of max contract or long term deal because again, he did not deliver his end of the deal. 

So maybe Daryl Morey is a “liar” in that sense and I’m definitely not one to stick up for anyone in the Sixers front office, but you can’t possibly take the side of James Harden in this situation. 

Danny Green on ESPN’s The Jump discussing James Harden Comments

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