The James Harden era with the Brooklyn Nets barely lasted over a year after he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in February. While it was a known fact he had animosity with Kyrie Irving over his vaccine stance and lack of availability for the team, it appears Kevin Durant was also on his back prior to the 2021-22 season.
According to ESPN's Kevin Arnowitz, KD wasn't pleased with Harden coming into training camp in rough shape:
Sources say that much of the discontent between Harden and the Nets started in September when he arrived into training camp out of shape. Durant had been understanding of Harden's predicament in Houston as a man in need of new scenery with the Nets, but also tacitly expected his former teammate to commit himself to conditioning and self-care when he came seeking a title in Brooklyn, according to a source close to both stars. With Irving's status already in flux due to his unwillingness to get vaccinated, Durant was astonished in the opening weeks of the season at Harden's lack of explosiveness and sluggish play, something he attributed in large part to Harden's being out of shape, as he did the ensuing hamstring issues.
Again, this is a rumor. We can't take it as gospel, but there is the possibility it's true. We know the type of competitor Durant and to be honest, there is a chance Harden did deal with a hamstring injury because of his conditioning. Nevertheless, the Nets Big 3 certainly had a very short time together because of various injuries at different times.
Now, KD and Kyrie will be looking to pull off the unthinkable and take Brooklyn all the way from the Play-In to the NBA Finals. It will be tough, but the potential return of Ben Simmons could definitely help their case, especially on the defensive end.
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