James Harden entered the Los Angeles Clippers locker room for the first time since being traded to the franchise and was embraced by Russell Westbrook. Westbrook and Harden have been teammates twice before and are good friends, exchanging some banter with each other before embracing.
“What’s up with you cuz? You alright? Cool cool. Make sure you stay on that side, you feel me?”
Harden and Russ 🥲
(🎥 @joeylinn_) pic.twitter.com/pQwtZ0Urq7
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) November 1, 2023
The funniest part about this video is Terance Mann completely ignoring Harden and acting like his new teammate didn’t just walk into the locker room. Many people are reading into Mann’s reaction, as the Clippers player spent nearly four months in trade rumors for Harden. Now that his spot on the roster is safe, it’ll be interesting to see how he and Harden get along.
There are massive concerns around the fit of Westbrook next to Harden, especially in their current state as players, but the Clippers are likely going to figure out a way to make it work. Whether that means starting both together or having Westbrook come off the bench for Harden is something we’ll see when Harden officially makes his debut.
James Harden And Russell Westbrook Hoping Third Time’s The Charm
James Harden and Russell Westbrook have been teammates twice before, with the Clippers being the third team where the former MVPs will share the floor. The two previous times aren’t what anyone would call successful when a pairing of such players should theoretically lead to a championship.
The last time both players were playing at an MVP level came as teammates on the Rockets in 2019/20, so maybe they can find a way of unlocking each other. The first time they teamed up was on the OKC Thunder, a franchise that drafted them with lottery picks in consecutive years.
This has to be the happiest destination where the pair have been teammates. Both of them are from California, along with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. With this homemade quartet of former MVPs and MVP candidates, the Clippers will look to win the NBA Championship as soon as possible.
Harden and Westbrook are in the twilight of their careers and could both be on the free agency market next season, so it’ll be interesting to see if their new partnership lasts more than a season this time or not.
James Harden Attacked By Chris Broussard After Trade
Harden’s antics in the last few months have annoyed fans and media analysts alike. This was his third trade request in as many years, with each request ending with Harden getting his way after creating a toxic situation on the team he’s trying to leave. But that frustration isn’t supposed to manifest in name-calling and slurs, which is what inadvertently happened on FOX Sports with Chris Broussard calling Harden a very inappropriate word.
“Nick! Is the man re*arded? Developmentally disabled?”
Broussard has since apologized for what he said, making a reference to his first cousin passing away recently, someone who also dealt with a developmental disorder.
“Let me apologize for using that word. My first cousin, we just put, he died a few months ago. He was developmentally disabled and I didn’t mean to use that word. I apologize to the audience.”
ON JAMES HARDEN BEING TRADED TO THE CLIPPERS THIS MAN JUST SAID “I AM SORRY FOR SAYING RETARDED MY FIRST COUSIN IS RETARDED” @Chris_Broussard pic.twitter.com/j3sSFMkPmC
— Stuart Feiner (@StuartFeiner) October 31, 2023
When you join a team and cause a veteran media professional to endanger his job with such poor choice of words, you know you’ve made an impact. Jokes aside, Broussard’s language is pretty deplorable and a more cogent apology would have been better.
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