James Harden has one of the more bizarre career trajectories of any NBA player in recent memory. He went from an understated, somewhat beloved sixth-man, to a perennial league MVP candidate with a lineup of haters.
This is in part because he’s never really found the postseason success, you’d expect from a player of his caliber but, frankly, Harden hasn’t done himself any favors from a PR perspective and has made a lot of enemies along the way.
Let’s check out 10 people in the NBA who, for one reason or another, hate the Beard!
Joel Embiid
Joel Embiid and James Harden have had a ‘frenemy’ type of relationship for some time now, but at this point, I think it is safe to say that the two have crossed over into enemy status.
Harden has done everything in his power to plant toxic seeds in the 76ers locker room and he’s put Embiid in a horrendous situation with his long-time fans in Philadelphia.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral NBA stories via Google! Follow Us
The Giannis-Harden beef dates all the way back to the 2019 NBA MVP race, when James Harden finished second in league voting to Antetokounmpo, despite becoming the first player in NBA history to average 35 points and seven assists per game for a full season.
Harden, as he is one to do, spoke out about it, essentially claiming that it was politics and a narrative that prevented him from winning the reward.
The Greek Freak didn’t take kindly to these inferences and publicly criticized him for it, going as far as flaming him ahead of the All-Star gaming, telling the media their strategy was pass the ball to whoever Harden was guarding!
Daryl Morrey
At this point, it is clear—the relationship between now 76ers Presidents of Basketball Ops, Daryl Morrey and James Harden has soured entirely.
The duo have a long history together, dating back to their days in Houston, but now that Harden has publicly lambasted his boss, safe to say Morrey is none too fond of his star player.
Chris Paul
Many moons ago, Chris Paul and James Harden looked to be on the precipice of a championship run, but after blowing a 3-2 series lead in the 2018 Western Conference Finals against Golden State, things went downhill fast.
The friction in the relationship became undeniable and the team’s championship window quickly slammed shut, a reality solidified once the Rockets dealt CP3 to Oklahoma City.
Kevin McHale
Kevin McHale is one of many coaches and executives who have fallen out with the controversial superstar. Thanks to Harden’s unwillingness to play defense or buy into anything McHale was trying to do from a team perspective, the coach was fired 11 games into the 2015-16 season, despite posting a record that was 63 games over .500 during his four seasons in Houston.
Charles Barkley
This one doesn’t seem to have a personal element to it, at least not to Chuck. But he clearly hates the way James Harden plays basketball and carries himself as a “professional” based on the way he regularly roasts him on TV.
Rudy Gobert
Though you might think that there would be solidarity between the two, as Rudy Gobert is none too popular amongst his peers, the French big man has been beefing with the Beard since 2018, when his Jazz played Harden’s Rockets in the playoffs.
The tension stemmed from Harden’s obsession with flopping and what James perceived to be as “hard fouls” from Gobert.
Steve Nash
James Harden’s time in Brooklyn was short, but impactful… At least—to Steve Nash it was. As it was Harden’s relentless desire to be a malcontent was a key factor in Nash’s firing from the Nets.
It is true that Nash wasn’t some world-beater head coach, but he wasn’t the reason the Nets fell apart—and when a player essentially gets you fired because he is completely unwilling to get in line that is fair grounds to hate him.
Kevin Durant
It seemed like Kevin Durant and James Harden had it all figured out when they linked up in Brooklyn. Between the two of them and Kyrie—the Nets quickly became a favorite to win the championship.
Harden, however, did what he does and had a falling out with everyone, including Kevin Durant.
The Fans
At this point, Harden has rubbed plenty of NBA fans the wrong way. Not just the fans of the many teams that he’s royally screwed over, but also the general hoops fans who are sick and tired of watching his playstyle. Between the flopping, exaggerating, and all his otherwise miserable-to-watch antics, he’s given NBA fans plenty of reasons to grow tired of him.
