James Harden missed a golden opportunity by not attending the Philadelphia 76ers’ media day.
At face value, him not showing up for work makes sense. Monday is supposed to be the launch of the new season for the Philadelphia 76ers. It is the first time that new additions Kelly Oubre Jr. and Patrick Beverley will be seen in uniform. Also, Daryl Morey was in attendance to field questions from the media.
Harden has already gone to extreme and immature lengths to try and force Morey’s hand to trade him to the Los Angeles Clippers. His most recent stunt was at a nightclub in Houston, when a bottle girl held up a sign that read, “Daryl Morey is a liar.”
His next escalation should have been to bring himself in all of his malcontent glory to 76ers media day, but not even breathe in the same room as his uniform. Taking his cue from the Monday Night Wars of the late 1990s, the most entertaining, and absurd, NBA media day moment of all time could have been Harden pulling up to the 76ers’ practice facility in fatigues and a makeshift tank.
Triple H knows how to find that “Jeep” that looked more like a souped-up injury cart. He could have gotten it out for Harden, and maybe he has the old fatigue pants as well which could save him an Amazon order. A 2023 version of DX invading WCW Monday Nitro, only this time it would be Harden at his place of employment.
What a scene it would have been on Monday morning in Camden, N.J., if Harden pulled up in the old DX vehicle wearing a custom “Daryl Morey is a liar” T-shirt, that would have a bag full of them to pass out to strangers.
As Morey began his press conference, Harden would bellow from a bullhorn, far more powerful than whatever Vince McMahon gave Triple H in 1998, outside of the facility, “Media, you are wasting your time. The man is a liar! Liar, liar, his Small Ball musical is on fire!”
A stunt like this would get Harden fined, but it’s not my money so I don’t care. I am in this for maximum entertainment, because I want to see just how much of a ruckus Harden is willing to raise to get himself out of Philadelphia.
When the report dropped over the summer that the 76ers were no longer looking to trade Harden, there was no way that he was going to stand for it. The last two times that he wanted to be traded he received his wish and was sent exactly where he wanted to go.
Emboldened by that success, his escalation was to be expected. However, a viral video of him calling Morey a liar in China is a tactic that I would have suggested he do in jest on this site. Harden was in “burn the boats,” mode in August.
Harden has already paid a $100,000 fine for those antics, and per the CBA that is a maximum fine. However, the fine was for espousing that he intends to not honor his contract when he said “I will never be a part of an organization that [Morey] is a part of.”
Since Harden is already going to have to eat the fine for not participating in media day, he might as well have turned it into an event. And what an event it would be, Harden with the fatigues on while driving an army-green injury cart and screaming “Daryl Morey is a liar” on the outskirts of the 76ers’ introduction to the 2023-24 NBA season.
Yes my scenario would be unbecoming of Harden to do, but so have his other tactics to get out of Philadelphia. At least my idea has some nostalgia to it.
Original source here
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