Harden Says ‘We’re Good’ With Paul After The Trade

On July 20, 2019, James Harden addressed questions about his relationship with Chris Paul during a youth basketball camp in Houston. Speaking on camera, Harden said, “There was a lot of false talk... Me and Chris had constant communication and we’re good” [7]. Yahoo Sports similarly recorded Harden’s phrasing as, “All the negative media stuff... wasn’t true. Me and Chris had constant communication and we’re good” [8]. The comments came nine days after Houston traded Paul, two protected first-round picks (2024, 2026), and two pick swaps (2021, 2025) to Oklahoma City for Russell Westbrook, ending the Harden–Paul partnership after two seasons [6]. Harden’s public tone echoed the June denials from Paul and Rockets GM Daryl Morey that had pushed back on allegations of an “unsalvageable” relationship and a trade request [4][3]. Given that much of the mid-June reporting relied on unnamed sources, Harden’s on-record statement functioned as a post-trade reset of the narrative, presenting the relationship as cordial despite weeks of speculation and conflicting accounts [7][8].

Harden’s on-record stance provided a definitive post-trade message that contrasted with the June cycle of anonymous-source stories and rebuttals. By emphasizing “constant communication” and saying “we’re good,” Harden attempted to close the public chapter on interpersonal drama and focus attention on basketball moving forward [7][8]. This statement also aligned with Chris Paul’s immediate June denial—“Damn! That’s news to me”—and Daryl Morey’s pushback, reinforcing the on-record case that the split was more about basketball direction than personal animosity, at least in how the principals chose to frame it publicly [4][3][7].

Following Harden’s comments, no new on-record disputes between Harden and Paul surfaced in the cited materials. The organizational separation had already occurred via the July 11 trade, and public remarks from both players framed the relationship as amicable post-split [6][7][8]. The narrative focus shifted to how Harden and Westbrook would fit together in Houston and how Paul would lead in Oklahoma City. In the context of the 2019 summer, Harden’s statement served as the final public word from the principals in the sources provided, marking the dispute as dormant in the public sphere while acknowledging that stylistic differences had driven roster change [7][8][6].