Smith: James Harden quit on the Rockets. Again. – Houston Chronicle

Let’s get two huge things out of the way immediately.
Then we can get into the fact that James Harden has only hurt his trade value by quitting on the Rockets again.
1. Harden isn’t in MVP shape right now.
He’s also not in All-NBA shape. And it’s easy to argue that the face of the franchise has been the third-best Rocket in uniform since the team’s already backward 2020-21 season began.
At least John Wall sounds like he wants to play — and play hard — for the team that pays him more than $40 million a year.
2. Harden created this and is now whining about what he created. Again.
He wanted Chris Paul gone.
Harden was adamant that he wanted Russell Westbrook, then played a key role in allowing his on-court relationship with Westbrook to fall apart.
And how did a superstar who’s always struggled with real, NBA Finals-worthy leadership react to another challenging offseason for the Rockets?
Harden intentionally arrived to training camp late. Then he helped screw up the start of the season by playing a key role in the Rockets’ Dec. 23 home- and season-opener being postponed because of coronavirus-related issues.
RELATED: James Harden’s lack of regard for anyone else hurts him as much as Rockets
Deshaun Watson, Harden is not.
And this isn’t D4 versus the Texans, the incredibly frustrating local pro sports team that fans love to hate.
Harden on Tuesday night, after the Rockets’ second-consecutive blowout defeat to the defending-champion Los Angeles Lakers: “The situation is crazy. It’s something I don’t think can be fixed.”
Wall, who is just getting started with his new team: “It’s only been nine games. Come on, man. You want to jump off the cliff after nine games?”
RELATED: James Harden’s Rockets situation can’t be fixed.
Of course, The Beard does.
Harden has drained any remaining sympathy in Houston. Fans want him gone. The Rockets want him gone.
The problem?
By so blatantly doing the Harden thing, increasingly infamous No. 13 has only made it more difficult for the Rockets to trade him.
The 100-percent truth: If the Rockets can find a deal for Harden that they like, they will send him away immediately. They’re tired of his me-first act and done catering to their franchise face.
But Harden is currently tied-for-13th in the NBA in scoring (24.8) and his last two performances have been abysmal.
I wrote this Sunday night after watching Harden slump through another listless defeat inside Toyota Center:
Harden still looks oddly disinterested and randomly frustrated.
If “I don’t want to be here” was a playing style, that would have been the overall hardwood vibe of the face of the franchise.
“Harden! Wake up!” shouted a fan, after the player being screamed at committed his seventh turnover of the game.
RELATED: Rockets slow to take flight and the James Harden vibe isn’t good.
Tuesday night was even worse against the same opponent on the same floor.
Then Harden intentionally undercut everything Stephen Silas and Co. are trying to build by again saying that he doesn’t want to be here anymore.
“We’re just not good enough,” Harden said. “The chemistry, talent-wise, just everything. It was clear.”
Crazy idea, I know. But what if Harden had arrived to camp early — in shape — and played his butt off during the initial nine games of the season?
He scored 44, 34 and 33 to open the season, so Harden can obviously still be one of the premier scorers in the NBA when he wants to.
When he cares.
When he tries.
But Harden is pouting again and, again, everyone in the NBA knows it.
The bench is the best place for No. 13 in mid-January.
Out of everything I’ve heard about Harden in the last few years, one theme always kept recurring: Harden was immature.
I heard that more than ever in recent months and it’s impossible to dispute now.
This isn’t all Harden’s fault. The Rockets have royally screwed up at times. Ex-general manager Daryl Morey left at the perfect time — and left the Rockets with a mess. Former coach Mike D’Antoni struggled to hold Harden accountable. Owner Tilman Fertitta has watched the Rockets go backward and backward since Paul’s hamstring gave out at the end of Game 5 of the 2018 Western Conference finals.
But a real leader would have tried to guide the remade Rockets through this.
A franchise player would have given his all, then reassessed everything privately after 20 or 30 games. Not nine.
Harden has quit on national TV in the playoffs, pouted during the regular season and kept asking the Rockets to change everything, after they catered to him over and over.
Before this season started, he demanded that the Rockets trade him to Brooklyn.
The Rockets stood their ground and now Harden has quit on his new teammates while refusing to give Silas a chance
The blockbuster trade can’t come soon enough.
But because Harden is Harden and he’s handled this so poorly, the Rockets are struggling to trade an out-of-shape ex-MVP who is barely trying anymore.
brian.smith@chron.com
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