By Martin Rogers
FOX Sports Columnist
In the NBA, money doesnโt just talk, it shrieks and bellows at ear-splitting velocity.
Money is currency in regular terms. It boosts the bank balances, yet is perhaps even more powerful in the eternal game of flex players engage in to try to show who is the best, baddest and most worthy in basketball.
Money might matter more in pro hoops than in any other sport. Contract sizes have escalated so much that it wonโt be long before someone earns more than $60 million per year. The deals, of course, are fully guaranteed, and every dollar counts.
Money is everywhere in the NBA and everyone wants more of it. Except for, in one of the more unusual developments of this off-season, James Harden.
Speaking to various reporters in a series of interviews to promote his new wine brand, Harden revealed that he would be taking $15 million less than the $47 million he could have opted into with the Philadelphia 76ers. He gave up that money after only 21 regular-season games as a Sixer, having been traded there from the Brooklyn Nets near the end of last season.
“I had a conversation with (general manager) Daryl (Morey) and it was explained how we could get better and what the market value was for certain players,” Harden told Yahoo Sports. “I told Daryl to improve the roster, sign who we needed to sign and give me whatever is left over.
“This is how bad I want to win. Iโm willing to take less to put us in a position to accomplish that.”
So far, so chivalrous.
There is quite a bit to unpack here, as we consider the eye-popping sum Harden is leaving on the table.
First, NBA wage packets are at a point now where $32 million for a player of Hardenโs caliber constitutes tremendous value, even if there is lingering uncertainty after the disappointing end to the Sixers’ latest postseason run.
Harden was outstanding in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Miami Heat but otherwise below his best, which he attributes to nagging injuries.
If he had accepted the full amount of his player option, it would have largely hamstrung Moreyโs attempts to put valuable pieces around him and star center Joel Embiid. The freshly-created surplus freed up room for (Hardenโs friend) P.J. Tucker and fellow forward Danuel House to be added.
Philadelphia fans have been drawn into false hope before, but there is no denying now that the Sixers lineup looks potentially imposing.
Harden hasnโt been an especially popular player during his time in…
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