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Sixers’ Joel Embiid hopes that James Harden’s ‘mindset can be changed’ as the MVP tries to convince his friend to stay in Philadelphia for next season
Joel Embiid said he was ‘disappointed’ when he learned that his Philadelphia 76ers teammate James Harden wanted to leave the team.
Harden requested a trade on June 29 after opting into his $35.6million player option for next season.
It’s rumored that the Clippers are the preferred landing spot for Harden, after the 14-year veteran wasn’t able to secure an extension with Philadelphia.
Embiid told Showtime’s Rachel Nichols at the NBA Summer League Party in Las Vegas on Saturday that he would remain friends with Harden, as he understood that the move was a business decision.
‘People make decisions and I’m more appreciative of the way he’s handled the whole situation,’ Embiid said. ‘We’re gonna be boys forever. [I] want him to come back, obviously so we can go out and accomplish what we want, which is to win a championship.
Joel Embiid (21) hopes to convince his teammate James Harden (1) to stay in Philadelphia
Harden opted into his deal for next season, but still wishes to be traded to a different team
The 29-year-old Embiid is coming off a league MVP season where he led the NBA in scoring
‘So hopefully, his mindset can be changed. But other than that, I’m just so happy to be his friend.
‘We’re close and we’ve grown since he got here and that’s what I’m excited about… to keep that friendship for the rest of our lives.’
Embiid is fresh off winning the league MVP award after a phenomenal 2022-23 season.
He led the league in points per game with 33.1 and was also top-ten in rebounds with an average of 10.2 a game.
Unfortunately for him, the Sixers were eliminated in a seven game conference semifinals series at the hands of the Boston Celtics.
