OKC Thunder said goodbye to Harden at the perfect time

OKC Thunder got out of Harden drama long before it became an issue

Since the beginning of January, Harden has been in the headlines. Due to the fact, this will be one of the more boring NBA seasons in recent memory.

The drop-off from ‘Bubble Basketball’ to hoops played in empty arenas makes for stale content, and I would be remiss to say even I have a hard time paying attention with zero fans in attendance.

So that leaves media with narratives they need to run with, and nothing is more compelling than an NBA Soap Opera. For example, Russ and KD, that story was recycled until we had so much Russ and KD it seemed like we were the ones in the relationship.

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So ultimately, the ‘The Modern Day Rodman’ is nothing like the real Dennis Rodman. The only similarity is the lifestyle and decision making off the court. There may even be some holes in my theory, but I find it compelling.

What will be even more maddening is that Harden will light it up this season, he will continue to have his name in hit songs, we will still see him partying until Adam Silver decides to do something about it. But what can you do to someone who makes that much money and keeps you afloat during a year where the Pandemic has decimated everything?

Hate him or love him, Harden doesn’t care what you think about him. He is making money and a lot of it. He leads the lifestyle like the artists he looks up to, and he will continue to do what James Harden wants to do.

While it is hard to picture Harden getting a ring, it also is very realistic, but at what cost? How much trial and error? How many times will a team split up for one guy? We have to ask ourselves if this is the most one franchise has done for one guy — Kobe had so much leverage, but let’s be real—it was Kobe.

We will see what the future holds for Harden, but I know there will not be a scenario where he gets more rings than Dennis Rodman, or if there will be a time where Harden is a better teammate than Rodman, but time is of the essence.

Harden should be looking in the mirror rather than pointing the finger elsewhere if he wants to win a championship, but maybe he doesn’t want that — this is entirely possible.

When it is the lifestyle you are chasing, it is hard to have any sense of direction. The OKC Thunder were able to dodge a proverbial bullet when they traded James even if the return on their investment wasn’t necessarily matched initially. The fact that OKC Thunder fans received seven glorious years from Steven Adams is enough consolation in my opinion.

I sometimes wonder how the face of this Oklahoma City franchise would have been affected had ‘The Beard’ put all of his attention into the organization. It has been over ten years and OKC Thunder fans are still processing the fallout that was like any other bad relationship, trying to keep the fond memories at the forefront and shaking our heads at all of the lost possibilities.