Philadelphia Sixers superstar Joel Embiid wants to play another year with his star point guard James Harden as he believes that they can do good things together. However, ‘The Beard’ has sent in a trade request to the franchise’s front office while accepting his player option for the year. He expects that he will be moved to a team that will pay him next summer when his contract expires.
Embiid, who remained tight-lipped about his teammate’s contract finally spoke about it and he is not too pleased about it. “Disappointed. Then again, I also understand that it’s business. People make decisions and I am more appreciative of the way he’s handled the whole situation. We are going to be boys forever. I want him to come back so we can go out and accomplish what we want, which is to win a championship. So hopefully, his mindset can be changed,” he told in an interaction with Rachel Nichols.
However the big man has a very good friendly bond with Harden and regardless of whatever happens with the contract and all, he promises to stay his friend. “Other than that, I am so happy to be his friend. We’re close and we’ve grown since he got here and that’s what I am excited about. I’m excited to keep our friendship for the rest of our lives,” he added.
Harden has had a calming presence over Embiid and that has helped the Sixers superstar to play even better as he won the regular season MVP award after years of wait.
Coming back to Harden, this was his first full year at Philadelphia and he averaged 21 points and also led the team in assists with 10.7 per game. He also worked hard and averaged 6.1 rebounds per game and 1.2 steals per game. Harden had a major role in helping the Sixers do well in the regular season and also played a role in Embiid securing the MVP award last season.
However, the Sixers for the second consecutive season have failed to get past the second round of the playoffs. They crashed out of the postseason after losing to the Miami Heat last time and this time they were beaten by the Boston Celtics.
The defeat against the Celtics will sting for a long time as they had a 3-2 lead and could have progressed to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2001.
Harden also played a major role in simply disappearing in the playoffs. He averaged 11 points on 26.2% shooting in two games which turned around the tie and allowed the Celtics to walk away with the win. He was poor from beyond the line as well, with only 10% shooting accuracy. It was another instance of the former MVP not standing up to the occasion. Embiid, who battled with a knee injury needed someone to support him and Harden with all his experience and talent couldn’t deliver at the big stage.
