Google News James Harden reveals what his message to 76ers after disappointing playoff exit
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James Harden reveals he told the Philadelphia 76ers managament after the season that he was willing to take a pay cut in order to help the team improve and win the title next season. Harden didn't impress during the playoffs and he received the most criticism following the 76ers' playoff loss to the Miami Heat.
Harden is 32 and he is playing on his third team in the last three season. At this stage of Harden's career, the only thing he cares about is winning a championship. “I had conversations with Daryl, and it was explained how we could get better and what the market value was for certain players.
I told Daryl to improve the roster, sign who we needed to sign and give me whatever is left over,” Harden told Yahoo Sports. “This is how bad I want to win. I want to compete for a championship. That’s all that matters to me at this stage.
I’m willing to take less to put us in position to accomplish that”.
Harden happy with what the 76ers have
This offseason, Harden gave the 76ers a $15 million discount and the team used that money to sign veterans such as P.J.
Tucker, Danual House. Also, the 76ers signed De'Anthony Melton and 2021/22 G-League MVP Trevelin Queen. “I think we have a much deeper team,” Harden told Yahoo Sports. “That’s something we wanted to address.
If you look at our team now, we’re positioned to go a lot further. I like how we stack up with the rest of the top teams”. Harden looked far from his best during the playoffs and basketball pundits all appeared to agree that Harden is now past his prime.
However, Harden doesn't think that's the case as he believes he can still be a major contributor in the league. “I don’t really listen to what people are saying. I wasn’t right last season and I still almost averaged a triple-double,” Harden told Yahoo Sports.
“If anybody else had those numbers, we’d be talking about them getting the max. People were used to seeing me averaging 40, 30 points, and so they viewed it as a down year. I was in Philadelphia for a couple of months and I had to learn on the fly.
That’s just what it was. I’m in a good space physically and mentally right now, and I’m just looking forward to next season”.
