Joel Embiid Reveals James Harden Doesn't Speak to Him After 76ers Tenure, 'It Hurts'

It has never been a secret that James Harden holds an enormous grudge against the Philadelphia 76ers and team president Daryl Morey for not granting him the lucrative long-term extension he was expecting after the 2022-23 season.

Apparently that grudge extends to superstar center Joel Embiid as well.

"No one knows this, but even James is not talking to me," Embiid told ESPN's
Dotun Akintoye. "That's the part I don't like about being 'that guy,' because it puts you in the middle of those situations. Because if you ask James, he probably believes I had something to do with him not being here. 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."

Embiid and Harden grew close during their brief time in Philadelphia together, on and off the court.

While it didn't lead to the championships that have eluded the Sixers since the early 1980s, the pair were a natural basketball fit. Harden was ultimately traded after his relationship with Morey and the organization soured, and he continues to punish Embiid for something that the big man believes was completely out of his control.