Suffice to say that the Philadelphia 76ers does not have a very forgiving fanbase. Throughout the years, just as the franchise went through multiple phases bookended and earmarked by unceremonious exits and developments, fans have circled in on a lot of players, spewing adverse agenda whenever the opportunity to do so pops up.
We have seen fans bring out their most contemptuous and vengeful tirades against former 76ers star Ben Simmons, who has been among the most hated All-Stars in the league. But if there is anyone who can top the maligned star when it comes to the vast amount of vendetta received from the fanbase, it is most definitely James Harden.
Unless you have been living under a rock, chances are you can still tell the story of how the former Most Valuable Player’s brief stint with the franchise soured and turned into one of the most well-documented and public beefs in recent memory.
For those in need of a crisp refresher, Harden went on an infamous public tirade against 76ers president Daryl Morey due to what he deemed as a blindside job on the part of the longtime executive anent contract negotiations. Eventually, the All-Star was traded to the Clippers, and the 76ers moved on from him with Tyrese Maxey rising to the plate before bringing in Paul George during the following summer.
Tyrese Maxey just called out the one ugly truth 76ers fans refuse to admit
Maxey, however, came to Harden’s defense just recently, shedding light on the indisputable fact which 76ers fans refuse to admit due to how toxic his parting with the team turned out to be.
“The biggest thing I learned is I know (James Harden), and I know people aren’t going to say he sacrificed, but he sacrificed. He gave up some of himself for the team, for the betterment of the team. He was able to get Joel a lot of easy shots. He got me a lot of easy shots. But it was all about trust.”
“His first instinct was always, whether we scored or didn’t, he was going to pitch it ahead to me — let me score in transition, play that one-on-one game, shoot — whatever the case may be. Then I’d get it back, and it would just flow from there.”
True enough, Harden made a ton of sacrifices when he was Joel Embiid’s main sidekick. It is no coincidence that the team turned into one of their better playoff runs with him handling the rock for the most part, even though the team ultimately came short in the end.
As the point guard in Philadelphia, Harden turned into one of his lowest scoring averages in his career at 21 per outing, He also took the fewest shots as a Sixer, constantly opting to read the floor and yield a lot of attempts to Embiid.
All of those came while Harden was still at the peak of his powers where he could easily average 30 if he wanted to. However, the team already had Embiid as its entrenched first option, and he was very willing to defer to his co-star and other teammates when the defense demands it.
WIth Tyrese Maxey coming to his defense first hand, it is time for Philadelphia 76ers fans to fully ride with the idea that his unceremonious exit from the franchise was not of his own initiation. We all know who is at fault on that front, and whatever happens from here on out will not change that.