By Shams Charania, John Hollinger and William Guillory
James Harden is opting into his $35.6 million deal for next season so the 10-time NBA All-Star and the 76ers can work together on a trade from Philadelphia, league sources told The Athletic.
The Clippers and Heat are both expected to be candidates for Harden, league sources say. Teams across the league who have spoken to The Athletic know that a player of Harden’s caliber is likely to achieve his preferred target, especially given Harden’s departure from Houston after the 2020 season. According to league sources discussing the Talks have been informed, the 76ers have already started discussing contracts for Harden with other teams.
The 76ers have made it clear throughout the process that the franchise has no long-term future with Harden, sources said.
Harden, 33, averaged 21 points and 10.7 assists per game last season. He was traded (along with Paul Millsap) from Brooklyn to Philadelphia in 2022 for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round picks. Harden signed a two-year, $68,640,000 contract with the 76ers prior to last season after accepting a roughly $15 million pay cut as free agency.
Philadelphia finished the 2022-23 season 54-28, losing to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
Why would Harden choose to do this?
In the first place, it’s probably because there wasn’t a suitor with leeway willing to pay him more than $35.6 million this season. (Far be it for me to suggest that the free-agent hearings will happen before June 30, 6pm EST; just call that a hunch).
However, it is also his best way to get to an important goal. The fact that he opted for his deal rather than becoming an unrestricted free agent comes as a surprise at first given his contract terms. Unlike some other players in this situation, Harden’s contract cannot be renewed; He’ll certainly be a loanee turning a full free agent next summer, and that may limit how much other teams might be willing to bid for his services.
Given these factors, arranging a sign-and-trade deal up front that will net him three years — the minimum required for a sign-and-trade deal — would have been a safer way to ensure he was paying for a long-term deal becomes .
Unfortunately, a sign-and-trade deal had its own limitations, as teams above the first paddock cannot acquire a player on a sign-and-trade deal, and that designation encompasses most teams that Harden is likely to want to join.
The other important issue here is timing – the trading rules for acquiring Harden are much simpler for tax teams, especially if it trades before June 30th rather than after, as soon as the New York clock hits the night of June 30th As midnight strikes, the new CBA is in effect and the outbound salary required for its takeover increases from $28.5 million to a minimum of $32 million. – Hollinger
What would Philadelphia want?
The Sixers would likely be looking for a combination of players and picks that would help replenish the roster, even if it took more than one deal to pull off their eventual endgame. Given that the Harden Philadelphia acquisition team would need to pledge at least $28.5 million, and some partners may not have that number of expiring contracts, the likelihood of a late-stage tripartite transaction seems high.
In addition to draft picks and talent, the Sixers would also likely seek to put Furkan Korkmaz’s unwanted contract ($5.3 million) into a deal, and could also seek to win the last two years and $22 million Pledge dollars for PJ Tucker’s pact. With the Sixers currently $7 million over the luxury tax line and only nine players under contract, they would need to take significant pay cuts to get far enough under the tax line to take advantage of their full mid-level non-taxpayer exemption. – Hollinger
Who could bid for Harden?
The most obvious suspects are teams that hit the cap because they couldn’t woo Harden with a free-agent deal.
The most obvious by far are the Clippers, who could win Harden by sending Norman Powell, Marcus Morris, Bones Hyland, first-round pick Kobe Brown, and a lightly protected first-rounder from 2028 to the Sixers for Harden and Tucker (I want to stress that ). that this is a hypothetical trade which I propose to illustrate). The Sixers could stretch Morris’ money and still have enough room under the apron to re-sign Paul Reed and capitalize on their entire middle-class exception.
The ever-star-chasing Knicks could pull off a similar package, bringing together Evan Fournier, Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley, plus one or more of their four first-round picks for 2024, in a deal for Harden. Again, the Sixers could extend the big expiring contract (Fournier) and rebuild with the younger signings.
By far the most hilarious scenario, however, is Harden’s trade to Phoenix for Bradley Beal, where he could reunite with Kevin Durant. Unfortunately, so far there is no evidence that this idea actually has a basis. – Hollinger
Does Harden fit into the “warmth culture”?
If there’s anyone who doesn’t quite fit the “heat culture” ideals, Harden would be at the top of the list. He has a long history of late nights in Las Vegas, questionable fitness and lackluster defensive performances. But at the end of the day, this league is all about talent.
And despite some of his shortcomings, Harden remains one of the most talented shotmakers in the game today. I still think Damian Lillard is top of the list for Miami this season off and there’s a huge gap between him and everyone else. However, should Lillard’s intentions continue to falter in Portland, Harden could be a great candidate to give the Heat the offensive boost they’re looking for.
I’m sure Harden wouldn’t mind living in South Beach either. If Harden makes that move, it would also be the second time in the past five years that Joel Embiid has had to deal with a prolific guard who is leaving Philly to make his way to Miami. – Guillory
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(Photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)