The Houston Rockets made it to the Western Conference Finals last season under head coach Kevin McHale and looked like they would be a threat to get back there this year. Instead the Rockets got off to a 4-7 start to the season and promptly fired McHale. Things haven't gotten all that much better since McHale got the ax as the Rockets are fighting to maintain the eighth spot in the West. McHale's firing came as a surprise to a lot of people but maybe not star player James Harden who had a hand in the move, according to Ken Berger of CBS Sports.
We are at a time in the NBA where star players have more power over their organizations than ever before. The biggest name that comes to mind when you think about stars having power is LeBron James as his teams have done everything possible to make him happy. From the reports of him having coaches fired to the Miami Heat drafting Shabazz Napier because he liked him LeBron seems to be very involved. Harden though, is reportedly as assertive as any player when it comes to involving himself in big decisions for his team.
Harden reportedly pushed management to fire McHale and GM Daryl Morey obliged. Harden's involvement in the organization has reportedly been bad for the locker room as teammates always have to be on edge around him. For what it's worth Rockets CEO Tad Brown denied the reports that Harden asked for McHale to be fired, according to Calvin Watkins of ESPN, but of course he was going to deny that.
The report not only states that Harden was a big factor in McHale's ouster but he also tried to get Dwight Howard traded. This isn't the first time Harden tried to get Howard traded as there were reports that the two Rockets stars tried to have each other traded after their first season together. Morey tried to again do what Harden wanted and trade Howard but he was unable to find a deal for Howard before the deadline.
These reports are not exactly a great look for Harden and it puts the organization in a tough spot. Of course the Rockets want to keep their star player happy but there has to be a point where his influence is too much. Firing McHale that soon after he led the team to the Western Conference Finals was a move a lot of people didn't see as fair but it's what Harden wanted and what he wants clearly goes a long way with the organization.
