With so much attention on Russell Westbrook sharing the court with former Oklahoma City Thunder teammate Kevin Durant and three other Golden State Warriors in Sunday’s All-Star Game, the presence of James Harden is almost an afterthought. The Houston Rockets guard (and MVP candidate) appeared on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” on Friday and said that he does not plan to be a mediator between his two former Thunder teammates this weekend.
“I’m staying out of it,” Harden said, via ESPN’s Marc Spears. “It’s not my place. I’m on a totally different team now. I know them both very well. If they need advice, I will give it to them. But I’m staying out of it.
“I don’t understand what is going on,” he continued. “I don’t understand. Obviously, they feel some type of way. It’s part of the game. Part of a guy going to a new team.”
It shouldn’t be Harden’s responsibility to broker some kind of peace agreement here. Perhaps, though, putting the three of them in the same place will give them some kind of perspective on the breakup of the team that was supposed to be the future of the NBA.
I’m also curious as to whether or not Western Conference All-Star coach Steve Kerr will play the former OKC Big 3 together. Since Stephen Curry beat Westbrook for the starting spot, this is not guaranteed.
Harden, by the way, isn’t the only ex-Thunder player to have commented on this situation lately. Former Oklahoma City center Kendrick Perkins said he thinks Westbrook and Durant don’t really have hard feelings, going as far as to say that Durant could return to Oklahoma City “in the near future.”
