It’s fair to say that the Houston Rockets needed James Harden way more than James Harden needed the Houston Rockets. Following his trade to the Brooklyn Nets, the Rockets went through a 20-game losing streak and it doesn’t seem like they’re doing great to replace him.
However, team owner Tilman Fertitta – who reportedly was one of the reasons why Harden wanted out of the franchise – doesn’t hold any grudges towards The Beard.
If anything, he’s satisfied with the efforts the team did to help him win a ring, and claimed that he’s actually happy for how well he’s doing with the Nets right now:
“I’m happy for James. As a franchise, we did everything we could do in the last five years to win a championship. When you go all-out for five years, then you’re going to have a couple of bad years. We hope it’s just one bad year,” Fertitta said, as quoted by Ben Dubose.
Tilman Fertitta on Harden: "I'm happy for James. As a franchise, we did everything we could do in the last five years to win a championship. When you go all-out for five years, then you're going to have a couple of bad years. We hope it's just one bad year." #Rockets
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) March 30, 2021
Fertitta also reminded the rest of the league that the Rockets won’t be out of the picture for long, as they currently hold several draft picks and players that have yet to be at full strength:
“We’ve got so many draft picks, already. And don’t forget, we were decimated by injuries. We were the most injured team in the NBA this year. What it is, is what it is. You pay the price for what you tried to do yesterday,” he warned.
Tilman Fertitta: "We've got so many draft picks, already. And don't forget, we were decimated by injuries. We were the most injured team in the NBA this year. What it is, is what it is. You pay the price for what you tried to do yesterday." #Rockets
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) March 30, 2021
Then again, you can’t help but think that the Rockets got a terrible return for Harden. They turned him into Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen, then into Victor Oladipo, and now into Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk; and a handful of not-so-valuable picks. Yikes.
