76ers' James Harden Reflects on Nets Trade, Criticism Ahead of 2023 NBA Playoffs

Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden still hasn't forgotten the criticism he received when he requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets ahead of the 2022 NBA trade deadline.

"I don't want to really go into that," he said, per the New York Post's Brian Lewis. "But there's a lot of internal things that was going on, which was one of the reasons why I made my decision. And everybody talked down on me and gave me negative feedback or whatever you want to call it."

Harden added he has since received a level of vindication given the turmoil in Brooklyn that lingered well after his departure.

The scrutiny toward the 10-time All-Star wasn't totally undeserved given what was known at the time.

He got his wish when the Houston Rockets traded him to the Nets, and a year after that trade, he basically sulked his way out of Brooklyn. In general, that's not going to afford a player a lot of goodwill.

The off-court drama came as Harden appeared to be slipping on the court as well, and multiple reports referenced Kevin Durant's frustration with his level of conditioning.

The narrative around the 2017-18 MVP has changed dramatically since the Nets trade.

In his first full season with the Sixers, he averaged 21.0 points along with an NBA-high 10.7 assists, and his 38.5 percent clip from beyond the arc was the second-best of his career. Durant's and Kyrie Irving's own trade requests also laid bare how Brooklyn's superteam was built on a house of cards, justifying Harden's desire to want out.

With the Sixers matched up against the Nets in the first round of the 2023 NBA playoffs, the 33-year-old can pile more misery on to his old team, and winning a title in Philly would certainly give him the last laugh over his critics.