(SportsRadio 610) -- James Harden's future with the Rockets is uncertain, despite the team's insistence they don't plan to meet his trade demands and their efforts to surround him with pieces to contend for a championship.
The Rockets traded Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards for John Wall on Wednesday, ending the one-year experiment with Harden's childhood friend and former teammate with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Harden has been the centerpiece of every iteration of the Rockets since he was traded to Houston in 2012.
He was paired with Dwight Howard, and that didn't work. Later, Chris Paul joined Harden via trade, and that didn't work.
Then, at Harden's request, Paul was shipped to OKC for Westbrook. Of course, that didn't work out either.
ESPN NBA insider Tim MacMahon, who's been at the front of this story, joined In The Loop on Thursday to discuss what's going on with Harden and the Rockets.
"Why did they trade Chris Paul? (James Harden) was the driving force behind that," MacMahon said. "So, I'm not going to sit here and say 'aw, poor James Harden' when in hindsight, trading Chris Paul for Russell Westbrook was a massive mistake that the Rockets now have to try to do their best to get what they can for Russ and move on.
"But that deal doesn't happen unless James Harden is the driving force behind it, the one who is primarily pushing for it."
Part of the reason Westbrook wanted out of Houston was so he could play in a similar role to his with the Thunder -- ball dominant and not sharing it with the league's leading scorer.
Seems odd, considering Westbrook had his most efficient season as a Rocket.
Westbrook also reportedly was unhappy with the team's "culture."
"The Rockets' culture basically is how James Harden wants it, absolutely," MacMahon said. "That's the way it is with superstars in the league. I don't understand why this was some sort of huge shock to Russell Westbrook. Basically, Harden and Westbrook worked with the front office to make that deal happen. They decided they wanted to play together. They made it happen.
"Why Russ got to Houston and was put off by all of that, I don't know."
Listen to the entire interview here.
