The world went bonkers when Paul George exited the Clippers after just a year. Most of LA’s faithful didn’t seem to be fans on the deal, especially after seeing the financials of it all. But after the Clippers’ 135-104 win over the Mavericks, star SG James Harden revealed that the team weren’t big fans of it either.

Recalling the event that led to this, first and foremost—George wanted to be a Clipper. But the deals they put in front of him were ‘disrespectful’ for a man of his pedigree. Despite a 3-year, $152 million offer from the team, he wanted a 4-year, $221 million max contract. Deemed improbable, he signed a 4-year, $212 million max contract with the 76ers back in July 2024. And we all know how that turned out. Meanwhile, former teammate James Harden confessed the aftermath of his leaving in a postgame press.

“Personally, I mean, you guys know, you know the players we had last year. You know, it’s different. Here was a moment in the second half where you guys got to stop, kind of accelerated and slowed down. Everybody kind of stopped around you and you figured out a way to get like a perfect in one basket,” said Harden.

During George’s first return to Los Angeles in November 2024, Clippers fans booed him relentlessly, chanting “PG sucks!” even during a pre-game tribute video. It was a stone-cold betrayal, and the brotherly love was broken. Well, that’s how Harden felt for sure, despite his best efforts to hide it.

It turned out to be a great deal for Lob City though, as they avoided a second luxury-tax apron penalty by not matching Philadelphia’s offer, preserving roster flexibility under the new CBA rules. While that did prove to benefit the Clippers in the long term, James Harden has let the world know of the reaction from the inside.

In the same press though, Harden spoke about his relationship with star forward Kawhi Leonard. It was a curious topic due to their little heated game of 114-98 win over the Pelicans last week.

James Harden provides insight on off-court relationship with Kawhi Leonard

Despite the initial hitch, Harden has settled in with his teammates well. His brilliance in shooting with Kawhi Leonard‘s offensive output makes the Clippers look like championship contenders at times. Even against the Pelicans—the duo combined for 49 points. But the little heated exchange got the fans worried for a bit—something the Beard clarified on after the Mavs win.

“It’s real. It’s just real. We don’t sugarcoat nothing. On the court, if he sees something, he’ll tell it to me. If I see something, I’ll tell it to him. And we move on. We’re professionals, we’re grown. This is my second year, we’ve built a really good relationship. We hang out off the court so we know each other. So our communication is just fluent. We say how we feel and we move on.”

Chemistry is defined by off-court associations. Harden didn’t just spend more time shooting hoops at the gym—he made sure to get to know his teammates on a personal level to improve on-court chemistry. And what did that result in? A current 8-2 of 10 record with 4 wins on the bounce.

The Clippers face the Spurs on 8th April. The last time they faced off, a 27/6/7 showing from Leonard and a 21/11/3 double-double from Harden helped the team to a 128-116 win at the AT&T center. They seem to be better off with Paul George out of the team. Will the Intuit Dome see the same result?