PHILADELPHIA — As the Nets get ready to face their former star, James Harden they reiterated that his departure 14 months ago didn’t cause their internal troubles.
Harden has said the Nets’ internal troubles caused him to depart.
Harden forced a trade down the New Jersey Turnpike to Philadelphia at the 2021-22 deadline, a deal that brought Ben Simmons to the Nets.
Now the Nets will face Harden and the 76ers for the first time in a game that truly matters: Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series on Saturday at Wells Fargo Center.
“I don’t want to really go into that. But there’s a lot of internal things that was going on, which was one of the reasons why I made my decision,” Harden said after the 76ers’ practice Friday afternoon in Camden, N.J. “And everybody talked down on me and gave me negative feedback or whatever you want to call it.
“But now fast forward today, nobody’s like, OK, James was smart, James knew what he was doing. Which I don’t want credit, but it’s like, I’m happy where they are now. I mean, best of luck to those guys and [Nets owner] Joe Tsai and that organization. They turned what they had into something really good, so they’re in the playoffs and nothing but great, great talk about those guys and organization.”
Tsai had been willing to pay Harden — who was a pending free agent — in order to take a real run at a championship alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
But Irving’s lack of availability — he missed two-thirds of the 2021-22 season due to his refusal to adhere to New York’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates — contributed to Harden’s decision to ask for a move.
It was a personal conversation with Tsai just days before the 2021-22 trade deadline that got the ball rolling on a deal.
The Nets eventually brought back Simmons, who had been holding out in Philadelphia citing back woes and mental health issues.
Harden re-signed a team-friendly extension with the Sixers last summer at far less than expected, just two years and $68.6 million, with a player option next season.
He averaged 21.0 points and a league-best 10.7 assists this season to give Philadelphia a dominant one-two punch, with two-time reigning scoring champ and MVP favorite Joel Embiid.
Meanwhile, Simmons has been shut down for the rest of this season with a back impingement.
He’s the only Net listed on the injury report.
“Obviously Ben won’t be traveling with us. He hasn’t been practicing,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said. “I’ll call him and see how the how the games were in his mind and he’ll stay here and rehab, but besides that, everyone else is good to go.”
Harden — who missed five of the last 11 games of the regular season with left Achilles soreness — said he felt “great” and pronounced himself fit to face his former teammates.
“I’m extremely prepared,” Harden said. “I’m going to play 40 minutes [Saturday] at the minimum. Just training my body, getting the right lifts in to be able to go out there and play 40, and be efficient and effective in those 40 minutes.”