Philadelphia 76ers bosses are apparently still thinking about bringing James Harden to Joel Embiid‘s side, as Marc Stein (Substack) reported. Accordingly, there is also speculation in league circles that Harden could be open to a team change next summer.
Sixers basketball president Daryl Morey knows Harden well from their time with the Houston Rockets and appeared to be promoting a trade for Harden early last season before the superstar joined Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving’s Brooklyn Nets.
Harden’s contract in Brooklyn expires after the current season, the Nets could send the 32-year-old to Philadelphia with a sign-and-trade deal and get Ben Simmons in return if the Sixers don’t sign the Australian before the upcoming trade deadline on February 10 send to another team.
According to the report, there has been enough speculation within the league that Harden is open to a move to perhaps encourage Morey to wait until the summer for Harden in a big Simmons trade. Harden reportedly turned down a lucrative contract extension from the Nets last October after Durant renewed for four more years in August. The possibility of a trade in the Sixers for Harden before the deadline was not mentioned by Stein.
The guard has averaged 22.7 points in 37 games this season with shooting percentages of 41.9 percent from the field, 33.8 percent from downtown and 87.7 percent from the free-throw line, the lowest in his last season at the Oklahoma City Thunder (2011/12). However, he leads the league with 10 assists per game (at 4.7 turnovers), along with 8 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.
.
