James Harden future set as Philadelphia 76ers make final trade decision

13 August 2023 , 12:03

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James Harden will reportedly remain with the Philadelphia 76ers for the 2023/24 NBA season (Image: Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

NBA star James Harden is set to remain with the Philadephia 76ers going into the new NBA season.

After the conclusion of the 2022-23 NBA Play-offs, it was widely reported that Harden would likely leave the Sixers during the off-season. The Sixers lost to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semi-finals, and went another year without a championship.

Harden was rumoured to potentially enter free agency this off-season, but eventually signed the one-year player option in his contract. The deal worth £28 million ($35.6 million) was reportedly agreed in June, but even then it was still expected that Harden would leave the franchise.

Now, according to ESPN, Harden will not be leaving the Sixers this off-season after failing to reach an agreement over a trade. It’s been claimed that the Eastern Conference franchise will look to bring the player into the fold for pre-season training camp.

The Sixers are due to return for training camp at the end of September, and it’s been claimed that Harden will now be a part of the roster, should things go to plan. However, the report does say that the decision by the Sixers has “set up an uncomfortable situation” with an “unhappy” Harden.

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Several teams were rumoured to be interested in acquiring HArden as part of a trade with the Sixers. The LA Clippers were seemingly the front runners, but there were also reports that the Celtics and the Miami Heat were potentially in the running for a trade.

But now it seems that Harden will be remaining with the Sixers for the next year at the very least. And the report went on to add that the 10-time NBA All-Star is not happy with Sixers president Daryl Morey over a lack of a long-term contract offer.

James Harden signed a one-year $35.6 million player option with the Philadephia 76ers in June (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

Harden has been part of the Sixers roster since he was traded from the Brooklyn Nets in February 2022. The trade saw Ben Simmons head in the other direction to the Barclays Center, who had previously been the subject of speculation regarding his future and a new contract in Philadelphia.

Should Harden return for the Sixers for the 2023/24 NBA season, Philadelphia will be hoping that he will continue his bond with reigning league MVP Joel Embiid. Training camp begins in September with pre-season games to follow ahead of the opening night of the NBA season which is due to begin at the end of October.

Mark Wakefield