In addition to being unhappy, Harden dealt with nagging hamstring injuries the past two seasons. He missed a combined 18 games with the Nets and Sixers last season associated with left hamstring tightness. That came after Harden missed 21 of the Nets’ final 24 regular season games with a right hamstring strain during the 2020-21 season.
Finally healthy, he put in the work this offseason to get his body close to where it was when he won three scoring titles and the 2018 league MVP in Houston. He especially loves having an opportunity to win the NBA and being paired with Embiid, his perennial All-NBA team, leading the way. But Harden doesn’t want his team to lose focus by getting too far ahead of itself.
And he sees first-hand how Philadelphians reacts to their professional teams contending for league titles.