James Harden Calls Rockets Departure 'Draining': I Didn't Like How It Happened

Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden said the drama surrounding his departure from the Houston Rockets was "draining." 

"I apologize for how it went down, but I guess I had to do what I had to do in order to get to where I wanted to go," Harden told ESPN's Rachel Nichols in an interview released Friday. "... It ended up the right way. I just didn't like how that month or two played out."

Harden made his discontentment obvious during his final months with the Rockets, highlighted by his late arrival to training camp after attending parties in Atlanta and Las Vegas.

He eventually got his wish, heading to the Nets to play alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving as part of a four-team blockbuster trade in mid-January.

The three-time defending NBA scoring champion likely won't defend that crown for a fourth time given the other superstars in Brooklyn, but he's played well since the trade, averaging 23.3 points, 11.3 assists and 8.2 rebounds while shooting 47.9 percent from the field in 13 games.

"We have two elite scorers that the world knows already," Harden told reporters after the trade. "My job is to come out and, obviously, score the ball when needed, but my playmaking ability—as far as getting our shooters shots and our bigs finishes around the rim and making the entire team better —that's one aspect of my game that will excel in this offense."

The Nets are still ironing out the problems with the restructured roster, especially in terms of the defensive deficiencies, with a mere 8-5 record in games Harden has played.

Their upside is obvious, though. Any opponent is going to encounter problems trying to slow down Harden, Durant and Irving at the same time. It's going to create a lot of games where the winning score will be in the 130s or 140s, even in the playoffs.

All told, Harden's departure from Houston wasn't smooth but he got the deal he wanted and the Rockets were able to obtain a solid return, led by Victor Oladipo and a large cache of draft picks.

So it could turn into a win-win situation for both sides in the coming years.