James Harden is still adamant that he gets traded before the end of this off-season. The Philadelphia 76ers have entered a desperate situation and there might not be a way out. Besides this, they also have to sort out issues regarding their playoff runs. They haven’t been successful enough to get past the second round of the playoffs since 2001. This may not work in their favor if they have to retain their superstars.
Over the summer, the atmosphere within the Sixers organization was very chaotic. The 10x All-Star was expected to land a multi-year contract, but Philly failed to comply. This forced him to request a trade even after signing a $35.6 million player option.
I am starting to wonder if anyone has told Harden that this clause exists that could literally end his career https://t.co/XOcNUeTAGj pic.twitter.com/3YpROpXAwz
— Hoops Reference (@HoopsReference) October 2, 2023
Harden went on to blast general manager Daryl Morey, calling him a liar in public. James told the NBA that Morey failed to fulfill a promise of trading the him soon after he signed the player option. As a result, he was also fined $100,000 for refusing to perform duties stated in his contract.
Morey and his team stated that they were focused on bringing James Harden to training camp. However, the former MVP has shown zero interest in participating with the Sixers. Philly initially approached the LA Clippers for a trade, which ultimately didn’t fall through. They tried to re-engage with the Clippers after showing mutual interest in Jrue Holiday. Unfortunately, the Boston Celtics won the race to acquire Holiday.
The Clippers are the only team that is interested in James Harden
With the Jrue Holiday trade done and dusted, the Sixers have no other option but to rely on the Clippers to make things work. During the 76ers’ media day, James Harden wasn’t in Philadelphia. NBA reporter Shams Charania stated that Harden was away from the team as he awaited to be traded. Unfortunately, the Sixers literally have nowhere to go in this situation. And Morey believes it might take a while before we see a trade.
David Aldridge of The Athletic recently stated that the Clippers might be the only team that has the interest and assets to acquire Harden. He said, “Multiple executives around the league reiterated Monday that there’s not much of a market for [James Harden] outside of L.A. With no other team in the West with either the assets or the inclination to get to yes with Philly, who’s left that would make any sense?”
“Multiple executives around the league reiterated Monday that there’s not much of a market for [James Harden] outside of L.A. With no other team in the West with either the assets or the inclination to get to yes with Philly, who’s left that would make any sense?”@davidaldridgedc https://t.co/um2ba5cj7B pic.twitter.com/E7zRPsmvb6
— Dru (@dru_star) October 3, 2023
Several teams have already dealt with various trades and are waiting to go ahead into training camp. The Sixers may have to move on from James Harden and rely completely on their MVP center Joel Embiid next season. James may not show up at all, but if he doesn’t participate in more than 30 games after the start of the season, he may be forced to stay another year as per CBA guidelines.
