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James Harden present, then disappears, from Sixers’ scrimmage at G League facility

Harden, who requested a trade this summer and is still upset with Daryl Morey, was with teammates and coaches during warm-ups but did not play or sit on the bench during the public scrimmage.

James Harden took park in warmups but not the Sixers' annual Blue/White Scrimmage, which was held Saturday at Chase Fieldhouse in Wilmington, Del.
James Harden took park in warmups but not the Sixers' annual Blue/White Scrimmage, which was held Saturday at Chase Fieldhouse in Wilmington, Del.Read moreCharles Fox / Staff Photographer

WILMINGTON — James Harden playfully placed his hand on the backs of Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey as his teammates dropped into push-ups, clearly the punishment for losing whatever pre-scrimmage competition they had concocted.

A few minutes later, Harden disappeared from the Chase Fieldhouse floor.

The 76ers’ star guard — who requested a trade this summer and still believes his relationship with president of basketball operations Daryl Morey is unsalvageable — was not introduced on either team for the Sixers’ annual Blue-White scrimmage held Saturday afternoon at their G League facility in Wilmington. Harden also did not sit on either bench, nor “coach” his teammates like the other veterans who did not play in front of fans.

That aligned with Harden’s approach since he ended his brief holdout. He has been practicing behind closed doors since last week — and, by overwhelming accounts, has been engaged with teammates and coaches — but not in any sort of public, game-like setting. Before Saturday, Harden had missed the Sixers’ two preseason matchups against the Boston Celtics, saying he was still physically ramping up to game shape.

When asked about Harden’s absence from Saturday’s scrimmage portion, coach Nick Nurse said, “I told everybody [Friday] that we’re going through normal practice [before the scrimmage], and there will be skill work afterwards. As you could see, I kind of [held] all the veterans out of the game, so I’m cool.”

» READ MORE: James Harden’s three most important quotes and what they reveal about the ongoing Sixers saga

Harden said Friday, when he finally broke his silence with a post-practice media session, that he hopes to play in the Sixers’ exhibition finale against the Atlanta Hawks on Oct. 20. First, the Sixers play Monday night at the Brooklyn Nets.

Harris, Joel Embiid, P.J. Tucker, Patrick Beverley, and Danny Green also did not participate in Saturday’s public scrimmage. Furkan Korkmaz (hamstring) and Danuel House Jr. (knee) also were held out for health reasons.

Instead, those players got to demonstrate their wide-ranging coaching styles. Harris held up hand signals for specific plays, while Embiid stoically perched himself on top of the opposite side of the scorer’s table. Tucker got visibly heated during a timeout, pulling up a chair to the center of a bench huddle. Newcomer Beverley was even more enthusiastic, immediately grabbing a clipboard and furiously paced the sideline.

“Pat Bev was on the court too much,” rookie guard Ricky Council IV said jokingly. “I ran into him one time. We would have been fighting had he been a real coach.”

Creating ‘synergy’ with Blue Coats

With all those veterans absent Saturday, spectators got their best glimpse of some of the players who will be spending significant time with the Blue Coats this season. More broadly, the scrimmage served as evidence of the “synergy” Nurse wants to build with the Sixers’ G League affiliate, which is coming off a championship season.

Nurse has strong belief in development at that level, rising to the NBA after stints with the Iowa Wolves and Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Sixers assistant Coby Karl was the Blue Coats’ head coach the previous two seasons before he was promoted by Nurse to the NBA team’s bench.

» READ MORE: Nick Nurse expects free-flowing new offense to get buy-in from Sixers and ‘make everyone a threat’

Mike Longabardi, who had been an NBA assistant for two decades but never a head coach, is now leading the Blue Coats. Before the G League season begins next month, Longabardi and his staff have been heavily involved in the Sixers’ preseason preparations.

“Seeing the opportunities that the G League coaches have had, this has been the best, by far, [of my career],” Longabardi said. “[Nurse has] really done an unbelievable job helping me, helping our guys. We have these relationships already built, so that when they do come on assignment, they already know who I am, so it won’t be something shocking.”

Paul Reed and Jaden Springer, who are expected to crack the Sixers’ rotation this season, are recent Blue Coats success stories. This season’s two-way players — Council, guard Terquavion Smith, and big man Azuolas Tubelis — are among those hoping to follow suit. Guards David Duke Jr. and Javonte Smart also have been with the Sixers during the preseason.

    Gina Mizell
    I have been a 76ers beat writer at The Inquirer since 2021, and also cover other Philly basketball stories. I especially love reporting and writing pieces that lift the curtain on the Sixers' people and process (pun sometimes intended), and that help readers feel connected to the teams they follow.