NBA Rumors: 76ers not expected to trade James Harden before season
NBA Rumors: There’s a growing expectation that James Harden won’t be traded before the start of the regular season.
With the start of the 2023-24 NBA regular season, there’s not much time remaining for James Harden to get his wish to be traded to the LA Clippers. Even though a trade is still very much expected at some point, there’s a growing belief around the league that Harden will start the season on the Philadelphia 76ers roster.
Yahoo NBA reporter Jake Fischer gave voice to this emerging reality. There remains a big gap in talks between the Clippers and Sixers. Philadelphia wants more than what the Clippers are currently willing to offer and LA doesn’t believe they should up their offer.
Naturally, there’s no surprise the two sides find themselves in the midst of a stalemate. The Clippers don’t feel they should increase their offer for Harden likely due to the lack of trade market for Harden. The Sixers don’t want to give Harden away just for the sake of doing so.
Both sides have points.
It’s actually pretty crazy how much the narrative has evolved regarding Harden. In a vacuum, Harden is still a very good player. In fact, he’s coming off a season in which he averaged 21 points, 11 assists, and six rebounds per game on 44 percent shooting from the field and 39 percent shooting from 3-point range.
He’s had his struggles in the postseason recently but he’s still a productive player that would help a team win a championship. And the Clippers would be a solid landing spot. LA needs to find a third star to put them over the top in the West and Harden may be the perfect target.
His contract lines up with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George and even though the Sixers are asking for more than what the Clippers are willing to offer, it’s not a huge ask.
When will the LA Clippers draw the line in their pursuit of James Harden?
At the same time, the lack of a market surrounding Harden does complicate things. Why would the Clippers negotiate against themselves? It’s understandable.
However, at some point, the Clippers either want Harden or they don’t. It’s been nearly four months since the Harden trade saga began. Are they willing to let this linger into the season?
Next. NBA: 5 Championship contenders being criminally overlooked as threats. dark
This is a far from ideal situation for all parties involved. The start of the regular season makes everything real.