The Houston Rockets are 3-6 and have the second-worst winning percentage in the NBA’s Western Conference.

James Harden, who has reportedly wanted out for a while, said as much publicly after a Tuesday night loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Tim MacMahon at ESPN:

Disgruntled superstar James Harden said the Houston Rockets are “just not good enough” after the team’s second consecutive blowout loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night, adding that he doesn’t believe the team can improve enough to be a contender.

“I love this city. I literally have done everything that I can,” Harden said after the Rockets’ 117-100 loss. “I mean, this situation is crazy. It’s something that I don’t think can be fixed.”

…

“We’re just not good enough — chemistry, talentwise, just everything. And it was clear these last two games.”

Well that’s interesting. We can think of a certain Eastern Conference team that might benefit from Harden’s services. An Eastern Conference team that has Ben Simmons going out and attempting two field goals in a game where his superstar partner scored 45 and willed the squad to an overtime win.

The top question is this –

What the hell is going on with Harden’s weight?

Check out this Tuesday night pregame photo:

Looks like you and I after the Toasted Cheddar Chalupa box at Taco Bell. Live Mas!

We know that a lot of guys enter a new season and they are not in the best shape. We’ve seen this in years prior with Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, and Joel Embiid, who, to his credit looks like he’s doing incredibly well in the fitness department through 12 games this season.

Harden has played eight games in the last two and a half weeks, logging 36.3 minutes, which is right around his career average. Even if he came into the season out of shape, by now you’d think he’d have played himself back into his typical weight range, just by virtue of the fact that he’s on the floor for 30+ minutes every other night.

Knowing that he’s only 31 years old, and not exactly motivated right now, it shouldn’t surprise anybody if that weight comes right off following the trade he wants. Daryl Morey has spoken previously about getting rid of the Simmons and Embiid trade “noise,” though things can certainly change over the course of a season.

You tell me –

Harden wants out. If the Rockets ask for Simmons and draft picks, would you #DoTheDeal? We could make up for the Marcus Mariota trade that never was.