LA Clippers Acquire Team Cancer James Harden And Sportsbooks Don't Really Care
James Harden successfully whined his way out of his 4th straight team. The Philadelphia 76ers sent Harden — the WORST PROFESSIONAL IN THE ENTIRE NBA, which is saying a lot — to his preferred trade destination, the Los Angeles Clippers.
On paper, this is a massive upgrade for the Clippers. Now, they have two former NBA MVPs (Russell Westbrook and Harden), a 2-time NBA Finals MVP (Kawhi Leonard) and an 8-time All-Star (Paul George).
This had a minimal impact to LA's NBA 2023-24 title odds at sportsbooks. The Clippers have the 7th-best odds to win the championship at PointsBet. However, this was the case for the LA Lakers' little brothers prior to the Harden trade.
I'm not going to pull any punches here: James is a disgrace to competition and the epitome of what's wrong with the NBA. First, Harden's role wasn't big enough in Oklahoma City. So the Thunder moved him to the Houston Rockets so he could get out of Kevin Durant's and Westbrook's shadows.
Then The Beard did "all that he could do" for the Rockets. Harden played for Houston from 2011-20, winning three scoring titles and an NBA MVP over that span. At the end, he threw a temper tantrum and ate his way to the Brooklyn Nets to play with buddies Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
That didn't work out for poor Harden either. The Nets lost in the 2nd-round of the 2021 NBA playoffs, James' only season in Brooklyn. Eventually, KD getting hurt and Kyrie's instability turned James off, forcing him to demand a trade to Philly the following season.
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Of course, the pudgy 34-year-old took zero accountability for Brooklyn's playoff shortcoming. This is the most consistent thing about Harden's career. Ultimately, his playoff struggles partially explains why the Clippers didn't jump anyone in the NBA title power rankings.
Former Philadelphia 76ers PG James Harden talks with center Joel Embiid during the 2023 NBA playoffs vs. the Nets at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. (Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports)
The future Hall of Famer has only one NBA Finals visit in his 16-year career and has underperformed in most postseasons. James averages 2.0 fewer points per game in the playoffs vs. the regular season in his career while shooting worse from the field and behind the arc.
That's the thing with winning in the NBA. Your best players need to show up in the biggest moments. Teammates can lift superstars to win titles in other sports. However, in the NBA, role players cannot win a 7-game series if a team's best player struggles.
Finally, call it "spite" but there's no way I'm investing in LA's NBA championship futures. Kawhi and PG are brittle and Harden is the worst team-player in the Association. James doesn't defend, play off ball, nor show up in the playoffs.