James Harden wants to return to the Oklahoma City Thunder – NBA News
The Oklahoma City Thunder are going to be facing salary cap issues very soon.
With 4 superstars players on the team line-up, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are both already playing on max extensions and the Thunder will have to decide the fate of James Harden and Serge Ibaka in the near future.
With cap space to manage, the Thunder will have to save some money somewhere. Although there have been a lot of rumours, it is difficult to see the Thunder parting ways with Harden, who is the current sixth man of the year and
an Olympian at age 22.
Harden himself feels happy and comfortable playing with the Thunder and says he would like to return to the team for another contract. Talking to Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated, Harden said:
“I’m pretty, a hundred percent, I’m pretty sure that I’m going to be in Oklahoma City. I’ll let my agent and Mr. Presti and [Thunder owner Clay] Bennett discuss all that, so I’ll let them handle that and stay out of it for right
now and worry about the USA Olympics.”
Harden had a breakthrough season last year with the Thunder, where he proved himself to be a quality guard. He has the talent and potential to play starting guard for any other team, giving him the opportunity to play a more central
role. However, Harden prefers to stay a sixth man with the Thunder and be an impact player;
“I love winning. We have some great guys over here, something special, something I don’t think any other team in the NBA has. We’ve got something special, so I’m focused on what we have and trying to win a championship with these
guys.”
In a few years, the Thunder have become a title contender in the Western Conference. More than that, they have built a culture which teams around the league are looking upto - relying on youth.
The Oklahoma City Thunder model is what struggling teams are looking at in their attempts to rise to the top tier in the NBA. And it is this culture and dedication towards winning that has players like Harden wanting to stay with
the club, even when they can get more limelight in big market clubs like the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Miami Heat.
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