Daryl Morey throws shade at James Harden after his trade to Cavaliers originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

James Harden expressed thanks for his two-and-a-half seasons spent with the Los Angeles Clippers, stating he did not request a trade to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The 11-time All-Star was shipped to the Cavaliers at the NBA trade deadline in exchange for Darius Garland and a future second-round pick.

Philadelphia 76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey doesn't seem too worried about any of the moves his Eastern Conference competitors made ahead of Thursday's NBA trade deadline, including the Cleveland Cavaliers acquiring James Harden.

The Harden trade was a mutual recognition as much as an admission -- that the 11-time All-Star had a better chance to win elsewhere, and a tumultuous era in LA was effectively over.

Besides that, Harden's tenures in L.A. and Brooklyn both included major dramas he personally played no part in creating. Kawhi's money might have actually grown on trees. Kyrie Irving torpedoed the Nets long before Harden got out. What was he supposed to do, stay on a sinking ship out of loyalty?

After the NBA trade deadline, James Harden and Jaren Jackson Jr. are fantasy fallers, with roster changes reducing their overall production.

The deadline delivered one of its loudest jolts on Feb. 4, when the Cavaliers landed James Harden from the Clippers in a swap that sent Darius Garland west. In Cleveland, his usage was capped by another alpha guard.

Superstar guard James Harden reportedly expressed interest in returning to the Houston Rockets before the Los Angeles Clippers traded him to the Cleveland Cavaliers this week.