Joel Embiid revealed that James Harden no longer speaks to him, expressing hurt over their broken relationship and suggesting Harden may wrongly blame him for his exit from the 76ers.
Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid shared a surprising revelation about his fractured relationship with former teammate James Harden.
Joel Embiid
Joel Embiid
Joel Embiid
MIN: 30.23
PTS: 23.79 (59.71%)
REB: 8.16
As: 4.47
ST: 0.74
BL: 0.95
TO: 3.26
GM: 19
In a candid interview with Dotun Akintoye of ESPN, Embiid expressed disappointment that Harden no longer speaks to him, a fallout that appears tied to Harden's departure from the Sixers.
"No one knows this, but even James [Harden] is not talking to me," Embiid said. "That's the part I don't like about being 'that guy,' because it puts you in the middle of those situations."
Embiid believes Harden may blame him, at least in part, for how things ended in Philadelphia.
"Because if you ask James, he probably believes I had something to do with him not being here," Embiid said. "And I'm just like, 'I won the scoring title. You won the assists title. We had a pick-and-roll that was unstoppable.'
"It hurts when you feel like you haven't done anything wrong. When you think you have a relationship like that with somebody ... you lose a lot."
Credit AP/Scanpix
Harden, a former MVP and one of the league's premier playmakers, was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in October 2023, just months after a playoff run where the Sixers fell short against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
During their time together in Philadelphia, Embiid and Harden formed a formidable duo.
Embiid, who won the NBA scoring title in the 2022-23 season, paired seamlessly with Harden, the league's assist leader that same year.
However, tensions arose following Harden's exit, which was marked by public friction with the 76ers' front office.
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