Harden felt that his "sacrifice" was not recognized, nor did it lead to the outcome he wanted. The first indication of this was when he was left out of the All-Star team at the end of January. Sources say that Harden, who had been an All-Star for 10 consecutive years, was upset by this rejection.

It did not make things better that his former Nets teammates Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were both selected as starters by fans, media and players, while Harden came in fourth among Eastern Conference guards, trailing Irving, Donovan Mitchell and Jaylen Brown.

Nevertheless, sources say that NBA commissioner Adam Silver was prepared to name him as an injury replacement. Harden just had to confirm that he would attend and play.

Days passed, and Harden did not respond. He was sulking.https://www.nikegirlslippers.com

When Harden finally said he would accept the invitation, Silver had already changed his mind and named Raptors forward Pascal Siakam instead of the injured Durant.https://www.nikegirlslippers.com/category/air-jordan

The 76ers did not do much to smooth things over after Harden's behavior. They publicly defended him, pointing out his snub. But they also acted carefully.