Philadelphia 76ers

James Harden believes he's unselfish. NBA fans disagree.

The guard explained Thursday that he can accept a smaller role with the Philadelphia 76ers thanks to his unselfish mindset:

Harden won three straight scoring titles with the Houston Rockets from 2017-20, but he said Thursday he didn't need to score as much once he joined the Brooklyn Nets alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. He also said he can take a backseat next to Joel Emiid in Philadelphia.

"You can't come in here expecting to average 30 points, so again, finding ways to impact the game," Harden said of the 76ers.

Fans weren't as convinced, mocking the superstar's initial statement:

The 10-time All-Star is certainly more than his scoring as one of the top triple-double threats in the game. In 21 games with Philadelphia, the veteran averaged 21.0 points, 10.5 assists and 7.1 rebounds per game.

Harden averaged 10.3 assists per game across 65 appearances with the 76ers and Nets last year, ranking second in the NBA behind only Chris Paul.

Though he often gets mocked for his defensive effort on social media, Harden finished last year with 2.7 defensive win shares, per Basketball Reference. This would have ranked second for Philadelphia over the full season, with only Embiid posting a better mark.

With Embiid set to return as an MVP candidate and Tyrese Maxey emerging as one of the bright young stars in the league, Harden can take on a smaller role while helping the team 76ers contend for a title.

Of course, the term "unselfish" could take on different meanings for NBA fans.

Harden was traded midseason in each of the last two years after ugly exits from the Rockets and Nets. It will be up to the 33-year-old to prove himself on and off the court in 2022-23.

Philadelphia 76ers wing Matisse Thybulle doesn't want to leave the City of Brotherly Love anytime soon.

"At this point, I would always want to stay in Philly," he said to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompey. "And if it’s up to me, that’s always going to be my choice."

However, Thybulle acknowledged the Sixers ultimately hold most of the cards.

"But considering that I’ve realized the reality of how far out of my control it is, if I do get traded or something does end up happening, I can look at myself in the mirror at the end of the day," he told Pompey.

Pompey reported in June that Philadelphia was angling to land Eric Gordon from the Houston Rockets and discussed Thybulle as part of a possible trade package.

The 6'5" guard was exactly as advertised on defense when the 76ers selected him in the first round of the 2019 NBA draft. Through three years, he's averaging 1.6 steals and 1.0 block per game, and he's twice been named to the NBA All-Defensive second team.

However, his offensive limitations are glaring. He's shooting 32.4 percent from beyond the arc to this point, and his inability to space the floor becomes an issue in the postseason.

Thybulle went 4-of-14 on three-pointers during Philadelphia's 2022 postseason run, a spell in which his playing time (15.2 minutes per game) fell dramatically from his regular season usage (25.5 minutes per game).

As much as Thybulle gives the Sixers on defense, the pursuit of Eric Gordon speaks for itself. The team was possibly willing to accept a downgrade on defense in return for a player who knocked down 2.2 threes per game and shot 41.2 percent from the perimeter last season.

76ers head coach Doc Rivers told Pompey he "couldn’t be happier in the way Tisse has attacked the summer."

"He’s been one of our hardest workers," Rivers said. "He’s worked both on the things we needed him to work on the floor, and on his body and strength."

Based on the absence of a trade to this point, it's safe to assume Thybulle will open the 2022-23 season in Philadelphia. If he can show some improvement with his jumper, then it might shut the door on a trade for the foreseeable future, too.

Things surely didn't work out as many envisioned when the Philadelphia 76ers selected Ben Simmons with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2016 NBA draft, but the Brooklyn Nets guard still has love for the city and its fans.

During an appearance on The Old Man and The Three podcast with former teammate JJ Redick, Simmons discussed his time in Philadelphia.

While he granted there is more noise and criticism that comes with playing in the city compared to other locations, he said: "Philly is obviously a sports city. In my experience, playing there was incredible. Like, for the most part, it was incredible. I had a great time. Like, the fans were unbelievable."

The Simmons story in Philadelphia is somewhat of a complicated one.

On the one hand, he was quite accomplished during his four seasons on the court with the 76ers and amassed a resume that included the Rookie of the Year, three All-Star selections, an All-NBA third-team nod and two All-Defensive first-team selections. The team also went to the playoffs in each of those four seasons.

Yet the more dominant theme was a sense of falling short of expectations.

Despite the one-two punch of Simmons and Joel Embiid, the 76ers never advanced past the second round of the playoffs. Simmons never developed an outside shot, which allowed opposing defenses to pack the lane, double down on Embiid and frustrate the Philadelphia offense in the most important moments.

The LSU product also missed his entire first season with injury and didn't take the court at all in 2021-22 before or after he was traded to the Nets.

Throw in his poor play in a shocking second-round loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the 2021 playoffs that culminated in him passing up an open dunk opportunity in crunch time of Game 7—which led to criticism from both Embiid and head coach Doc Rivers—and there was plenty left to be desired.

Simmons and the 76ers also reached a settlement this summer regarding his grievance over the salary the team withheld amid his absence during the 2021-22 campaign.

While Simmons didn't play in Philadelphia when the Nets came to town last season, that didn't stop the fans from mercilessly booing him on the bench and even in warm-ups.

The reception figures to be quite similar in 2022-23, especially if he is actually on the court when Brooklyn comes to town. Yet those boos apparently didn't take away some of his positive feelings for the city or the fans given his latest comments.

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers' Twitter account was reportedly hacked before the team managed to regain control of it.

According to John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia, a friend informed Rivers of "bizarre activity" on his account, including controversial likes, which the Sixers were able to undo.

Per Ryan Glasspiegel of the New York Post, Rivers' account liked multiple tweets that featured "adult content."

The 60-year-old Rivers is preparing to enter his third season in Philly and his 24th season as an NBA head coach overall.

Rivers previously coached the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers, and he has amassed a 1,043-735 record in 1,778 regular-season games.

Perhaps most impressively, Rivers' teams have reached the playoffs in 18 of his 23 seasons as head coach, including 14 of the past 15.

His greatest success came in Boston, where he led the Celtics to the NBA Finals twice, including a championship in 2008.

In his first two seasons with the Sixers, the team has gone 100-54 and reached the playoffs twice, but they have failed to advance past the second round each time.

Playoff shortcomings have seemingly become a hallmark for the 76ers in recent years, but the front office was hard at work this offseason to add to an already strong roster in hopes of making a deeper run to the Eastern Conference Finals or even the NBA Finals.

For starters, the 76ers re-signed All-Star guard James Harden after acquiring him in a midseason trade with the Brooklyn Nets. Keeping him meant maintaining a core of Harden, Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey.

Philadelphia also brought in the likes of P.J. Tucker, De'Anthony Melton, Danuel House Jr. and Montrezl Harrell to solidify one of the deepest rosters in the NBA.

With a full season of Harden alongside Embiid and Co., the Sixers are one of a handful of teams with a legitimate shot to go the distance in the Eastern Conference.

Former Philadelphia 76ers co-owner and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin has purchased a home in Los Angeles' Hollywood Hills for a record-setting $70 million, according to Jack Flemming of the Los Angeles Times.

The home was initially listed for more than $80 million, per TMZ Sports, and has seven bedrooms and 12 bathrooms across three stories. It also overlooks the Sunset Strip in Hollywood.

The property was also previously home to Ronald Reagan and this time around was listed by Francesco Aquilini, chairman of the NHL's Vancouver Canucks.

Fanatics is valued at $27 billion and Rubin has a net worth of $10.2 billion, according to Forbes.

Philadelphia 76ers power forward Montrezl Harrell was peppered with NBA questions by police during a traffic stop on May 12 in Richmond, Kentucky.

TMZ Sports reported Wednesday that Harrell was pulled over for following another car too closely, and officers decided to search the car after smelling marijuana. While the search took place, the cops asked the 2020 Sixth Man of the Year about a variety of NBA topics.

"He's a cool person," Harrell said when asked about former Charlotte Hornets teammate LaMelo Ball. "I mean, regular kid. At the end of the day, people still got to understand he's a kid."

The 28-year-old North Carolina native also named the Sixers when asked about the league's worst facilities to play at, and he proceeded to sign with Philly on Tuesday.

Police said they found three pounds of weed in the vehicle, but they issued citations to Harrell and another man with him in the car before letting both go. Harrell, who was initially charged with a Class-D felony for trafficking less than five pounds of marijuana, agreed to plead guilty in order to receive a reduced charge of simple marijuana possession—a count that can be conditionally discharged in 12 months, per TMZ.

Harrell's arrival to the 76ers marks his sixth NBA team since being selected by the Houston Rockets in the 2015 draft. He's also played for the Hornets, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers and Washington Wizards.

His stay in Charlotte was short, joining the team in a February trade and leaving as a free agent over the summer, but clearly he was impressed with Ball's demeanor as a 21-year-old rising star. The feeling was mutual.

"I love Trezz already," Ball told reporters after the trade. "He just brings a whole lot of effort and keeps people locked in."

Harrell has averaged 12.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 62 percent from the field across 458 NBA games. All but 29 of those appearances have come off the bench, making him one of the league's most impactful reserves.

The former University of Louisville standout figures to join P.J. Tucker and Georges Niang as key frontcourt depth behind projected starters Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris for the Sixers.

Philadelphia tips off the regular season on Oct. 18 with a road game against the Boston Celtics, another top-tier contender in the Eastern Conference.

Philadelphia 76ers superstar James Harden is using his Impact13 Foundation to fund a "financial literacy tour" for college students across the country.

CNBC's Sarah O'Brien reported Monday that Impact13 is working with Awoye Capital managing partner Jordan Awoye to connect with students for an e-course on topics like budgeting, debt, credit and investing.

"For me, it was learning how to not just save, but how to make smart investments," Harden told O'Brien. "You might have money in a bank account or in savings, but for longevity, your money's got to be working for you when you sleep. That's something I've learned."

Impact13 will cover the $795 licensing cost for the class through scholarship money. Awoye told CNBC he has visited six colleges as part of the tour, and it's possible Harden could drop in at future seminars.

"Once I started to do well in wealth management, it really started to become a mission of mine to help with financial literacy," Awoye said. "If we can give that to the next generation, everybody will be better off for it."

Not everyone is in Harden's financial position; Spotrac estimates he's accumulated $268.7 million in on-court earnings. But the Sixers standout said it's normal for people to buy things like their first car and first house after they start to earn a steady income.

The 10-time NBA All-Star told O'Brien financial literacy is crucial when it comes to long-term money management, though.

"I think just coming from where I'm from and where I am now—making it to the NBA, being there for 14 years and seeing how money is handled—it's more than necessary to allow Jordan and people like me to explain and show how to manage money," Harden said.

The 33-year-old Los Angeles native was a first-round pick of the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2009 draft, and he's become one of the NBA's best players, highlighted by three scoring titles and the 2017-18 MVP award.

His Impact13 Foundation aims to "assist with socio-economic disadvantages and empower women and youth in the areas of community development, education, entrepreneurship, the arts, fashion and sports."

It appears the relationship between James Harden and Kevin Durant has been repaired.

The former two-time teammates were seen partying together at a Travis Scott concert earlier this month, a moment that sent social media buzzing about a potential Durant-Harden reunion in Philadelphia.

The Ringer's Bill Simmons said the viral moment came after an "all weekend" hang session that led to Durant considering the Sixers as a potential destination.

"KD and Harden, this is what I heard: They don’t talk after the trade. They basically go radio silent on each other. They run into each other. They hang out all weekend. And by the end of the weekend, KD is sniffing around on Philly," Simmons said on his podcast.

While there may be some level of interest from Durant—and likely from the Sixers— Philadelphia has almost no chance of ultimately pulling off a trade.

The Sixers' best offer would include Tobias Harris, Tyrese Maxey and Matisse Thybulle. Philadelphia has no future first-round picks to offer until 2029 due to the Stepien Rule, though the offer could include some pick swaps.

The Boston Celtics already topped the Sixers' offer by making Jaylen Brown available. No matter how highly Maxey's long-term value is viewed, Brown has already proven himself to be an All-Star capable of being the second-best player on a Finals contender. Brown is the trump card that every other team needs to beat, and the Sixers can't do it.

Durant could attempt to leverage the situation to get his way to Philadelphia, but the Nets have shown they're willing to drag things out as long as it takes to get an offer they like. It's not often you see a team owner publicly say his organization won't be leveraged by a player. Brooklyn has Durant under contract for four more seasons; the team has every right to play hardball.

In a nutshell: Kevin Durant's only games in Philadelphia next season will be as a visitor. There will be no reunion.