Daryl Morey’s long national nightmare is over.
The Philadelphia 76ers manager agreed to trade 10-time NBA All-Star and former MVP James Harden to the Los Angeles Clippers early Tuesday. according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The 76ers will reportedly receive Marcus Morris, Nic Batum, Robert Covington, Kenyon Martin Jr. and draft picks. according to Wojnarowski. PJ Tucker and Filip Petrušev are also part of the deal and will go to LA, according to ESPN.
Philadelphia also receives an unprotected 2028 first-round pick, second-round picks in 2024 and 2029, a 2029 pick swap and a protected 2026 first-round pick from the Oklahoma City Thunder. Wojnarowski reported. According to Yahoo Sports senior NBA reporter Jake Fischer, the Thunder’s 2026 selection will be the lower-rated selection of three the Thunder own.
The 76ers will waive Danny Green to clear a roster spot and complete the deal. according to Wojnarowski. As part of the deal, the Clippers will send a 2027 first-round pick swap to Oklahoma City.
Harden hasn’t played yet this fall and he was reportedly blocked by security last week from boarding the team’s plane for the season-opening two-game road trip. The NBA later opened an investigation into his absence, although Harden returned to the team’s bench in Sunday’s home opener. He should train with the team again on Tuesday and prepare to make his debut as early as Thursday.
Now, Harden will head to the other side of the country and prepare to start his season with the Clippers instead. It is unclear when he will make his debut. The Clippers have won two of their first three games this season and face the Orlando Magic on Tuesday.
Harden is reportedly “over the moon” about joining the Clippers and could be at Tuesday’s game at Crypto.com Arena. according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne.
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On the eve of free agency, Harden exercised his $35.6 million option for the 2023-24 season only to request a trade from the Sixers, preferably to the Clippers. When Wojnarowski learned that Philadelphia had not found adequate compensation for Harden and that he expected the 34-year-old to report to training camp, Harden made his stance on his relationship with the front office clear.
“Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be part of any organization he is a part of,” Harden told the crowd at a promotional event in China last month. He repeated this statement to make sure the cameras caught it.
The NBA fined Harden $100,000 for “intimating that he would not perform as required by his player contract unless he was transferred to another team.” It remains unclear whether the deception Harden was referring to was alluding to a lucrative contract extension that never materialized or his ongoing trade request.
Former NBA MVP James Harden has never missed the playoffs in his 14-year career and is still looking for his first championship. (Vincent Carchietta/USA Today Sports)
Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Morey was neither surprised by Harden’s comments nor shaken in his desire to achieve the same value for a player he once called “the best offensive player of all time.”
In agreeing to the deal with Harden, Morey either got his asking price or lowered it, depending on how you feel about the 2018 MVP’s recent performance and the package the Sixers are getting in return. The most important opinion on this topic belongs to reigning league MVP Joel Embiid. His thoughts on a carousel that has led Ben Simmons to a new team dynamic in Harden will be closely watched.
Harden averaged 21 points (44/39/87 shooting), 10.7 assists and 6.1 rebounds in 58 games last season, helping Philadelphia to its seventh game in another Eastern Conference semifinal.
The 14-year veteran is no longer the player he was from 2016 to 2020, when he won three straight scoring titles in four straight seasons and finished in the top three in MVP voting. His 6.2 free throw attempts per game were his fewest since winning Sixth Man of the Year honors for the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012, and his defense has slipped from an already subpar level, but his playmaking remains exceptional.
Harden excelled in last season’s conference semifinals against the Boston Celtics, scoring 40 points twice in the win, but his 12.5 points per game on 21.8% shooting in four losses turned the series in the rival’s favor. Even in his prime, Harden was never known as a standout playoff player.
There should also be concern for his health and his commitment to helping a team win. Soft tissue injuries have plagued Harden since he arrived in Houston in 2020 training camp out of shape. Strained hamstrings in both legs hampered his playoff performances in 2021 and 2022. A strained tendon in his right foot and a sore left Achilles tendon cost him 24 games last season. He has missed an average of 23 games over the past three seasons after missing no more than nine games in his previous 11 seasons.
He did accept $14 million less when he declined a $47.4 million option last summer, making room for Philadelphia to add PJ Tucker and Danuel House Jr., but that didn’t get the Sixers any closer to a title . Harden also gave up on the Houston Rockets in 2021 and the Brooklyn Nets in 2022 when it became clear that neither team would give him a chance to win his first ring, resulting in him being stuck with the years remaining had to sign a major contract.
Harden will join a fourth team in two calendar years, marking the latest chapter in the strangest superstar career of all time.