NBA Rumors: Why Doc Rivers Called Out James Harden In 76ers’ Meetings

It doesn’t sound like James Harden was upset to see the 76ers move on from Doc Rivers.

One probably could have gathered that from Harden’s remark about Rivers after Philadelphia’s season-ending loss Sunday when the 2018 NBA MVP described his relationship with the longtime head coach as just “OK.” But if a recent report from ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne is true, “OK” might be a stretch.

During an appearance on 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia, Shelburne explained there was “a lot of doubt” about whether Harden would ever want to play for Rivers again. The veteran NBA insider went on to reveal one of the potential causes of the friction.

“There was a few team meetings I had heard about where Doc tried to say something about (Harden) going out on the road and, ‘How does that look? How does it look to your teammates? If you are going to do that you gotta really show up in the game.’ There was a lot of trying to hold James accountable in certain ways,” Shelburne said, as transcribed by SB Nation.

Harden no longer has to worry about beefing with Rivers in Philadelphia, but it remains to be seen if the 10-time All-Star keeps calling the City of Brotherly Love his NBA home. Harden can opt out of his contract this summer and he reportedly is “very serious” about leaving the 76ers for a certain team.