James Harden expected to join 76ers in training camp today

Was there some sort of side deal made? It was assumed by many throughout the NBA that, in exchange for the pay cut, Morey promised Harden he’d take care of him the following offseason. The Sixers, as you’d expect, insist that no such guarantee was ever made; the NBA investigated that allegation last offseason and found no proof of an under-the-table handshake. Then again, as rivals agents and executives across the NBA have pointed out in interviews throughout the year, if such a conversation did take place, it would be in-person or over the phone. There wouldn’t be a paper trail. For much of the last season, it looked like it wouldn’t matter. Harden was fantastic. He led the league in assists. He became a potent pick-and-roll partner with Joel Embiid. “He was thrilled when Embiid won MVP,” someone close to Harden said. He even bought his center a Rolex as a congratulatory gift. -via FoxSports.com / October 3, 2023

First, in late April, the Rockets hired Ime Udoka as their next head coach. Udoka was an assistant with the Nets when Harden was in Brooklyn. According to people familiar with Udoka’s thinking, he was not a fan of Harden’s then, and so his hiring removed Houston from the board. Not long after, the Sixers were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics, with Harden shooting just 7-for-27 and scoring just 22 points combined in Games 6 and 7, both losses. Morey wanted Harden back, but not on a four-year, max deal, according to people familiar with the Sixers’ thinking. He and the organization as a whole agreed that such a deal could not be offered. -via FoxSports.com / October 3, 2023

The best example of this is one Morey has discussed often. In 2006, while running the Rockets, he traded for Shane Battier. At the time, Battier was an average role player on the Grizzlies. But he was data-curious and open to everything Morey was selling, and not only did he blossom in Houston, but he and Morey grew close. Then, five years later, Morey traded Battier back to Memphis. Battier, whose wife was pregnant, was furious; the deal temporarily broke their friendship. “Daryl, at the time, was not a favorite in our household,” Battier told FOX Sports in February 2022. -via FoxSports.com / October 3, 2023