Why was James Harden fined $100,000 for soliciting a trade for the 76ers while other players were not?

The NBA has fined Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden $100,000 over his public trade demands, the league announced Tuesday. Here’s what you need to know:

• Harden reiterated his desire not to play for Philadelphia and called president of basketball operations Darryl Morey a “liar” during an adidas marketing appearance on August 14.
• The NBA investigation confirmed that comments Harden made on August 14 and 17 indicated the guard’s belief that the 76ers would not trade him.
• Harden requested the trade in late June and would prefer to send him to the Los Angeles Clippers.
• The NBA said on Tuesday that it intends to file a complaint about Harden’s discipline by the NBA and intends to have the matter heard by an arbitrator: “We respectfully disagree with the league’s decision to discipline James Harden for recent comments he made, which we believe are Does not violate the rule against general trade requirements.

the athleteinstant c analysis:

Why is this particular commercial application acceptable?

Apparently, $100,000 is the price of honesty.

And when league officials asked Harden to explain why he had called Morey a “liar,” he could have found some way around the truth. Instead, he asserted, his insult was related to the fact that, in his view, the Sixers executive had not fulfilled his trade request in a timely manner that he had allegedly been promised. And in today’s NBA, where it is now very safe to share trade requests anonymously through the media loophole, any public acknowledgment of a trade is a no-go. – your mom

Why didn’t other commercial demands lead to fines?

Pursuant to Article VI, Section 18 of the league’s collective bargaining agreement, Harden violated the rules here. But again, the association was only able to prove this because of his confession during the investigation.

“Any player (or, for clarity, any player representative or person acting with authority on behalf of a player) who publicly expresses a desire to transfer to another team shall be subject to a fine and/or suspension. The maximum fine that the NBA may impose on a player is as Above is 150 thousand dollars.

That’s the norm these days, with Anthony Davis ($50,000 in 2019 when his agent, Rich Paul, publicly discussed his trade request in New Orleans) and Dwayne Dedmon ($50,000 to publicly discuss his trade request in Sacramento) among the more recent examples. But as long as you discuss trade orders anonymously, you are safe. – your mom

background story

Last week, the NBA launched an investigation into Harden’s comments about Morey.

“Darryl Morey is a liar and I will never be part of an organization he belongs to,” Harden told the audience at the Aug. 14 marketing event. “Let me say it again: Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization he is a part of.”

On Friday, Harden he told KHOU 11 News Houston He believes his relationship with Morey and the 76ers is “irreparable”.

The next day, team sources confirmed that Morey and the 76ers had decided to end trade talks involving Harden and that they expected him to show up for training camp in late September. the athlete I previously reported that Harden has no plans to participate in training camp.

Harden asked in late June when his anger over how Morey handled his potential free agency led to him choosing to pick a player option for next season (worth $35.6 million) while simultaneously asking for a trade. As did Maury he said publiclyThe 76ers are keenly aware of the need to keep the all-star talent around big man Joel Embiid, and as a result, they refuse to strike a deal that leaves their best player in a worse position to fight for the title.

the athlete It reported Monday that Harden spoke to NBA investigators about his “false” comment and said he was referring to Morey telling Harden he would trade him “quickly” after signing up for $35.6 million.

76ers owner Josh Harris said he’s working to convince Harden to stay in Philadelphia and is willing to “accommodate whatever he wants” if he and the team can’t get the 14-time All-Star to void his trade order.

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(Photo: Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)