James Harden will be opting into his deal with the 76ers in order to find a home elsewhere. This is a bombshell with two clear contenders in play.
As reported by Shams Charania, James Harden has opted into his player option with the idea that the 76ers will end up trading Harden to another team.
This was a bit unexpected due to the fact there weren't a lot of rumors about a sign-and-trade of Harden this season. It seemed like he would return to Philly after a hard recruiting push by the Rockets.
Adrian Wojnarowski reported the Knicks, and Clippers are the two teams that are expected to be interested in trading for the player among other teams.
Obviously, Harden has control over where he goes with him having long-term control over his future. The way to get an expiring deal for both teams is very easy.
The Sixers will not have a lot of leverage due to the fact that Harden is not extension eligible after accepting his player option.
Knicks James Harden trade: What can NY offer in a deal for James Harden?
The Knicks can offer Evan Fournier and Isaiah Hartenstein to make the salary work. They could offer a lot of draft picks to make the deal work.
New York controls all of their picks, which means they can trade those, the Mavericks first-rounder next season, and the Bucks' 2025 first-round pick. They do have some dummy first-round picks but those will most likely convert into second-round picks in all likelihood.
They could offer one of the young kids like Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin but they will most likely not have to offer R.J. Barrett due to the fact that the Sixers do not have leverage.
Clippers James Harden trade: What can LA offer in a deal for James Harden?
The Clippers could also offer a deal centered around Marcus Morris, Nicolas Batum, and first-round picks. They do not have control over their first-round picks for the next couple of years but they could start offering their own first-round picks in the late 2020s.
The Knicks offer could be better but again Harden has control over his next destination.
Although a lot of people have linked Paul George in a trade return to Philadelphia, it might be not likely due to the fact that the Sixers do not have a lot of time to get a deal done.
Yes, they did end up turning Ben Simmons from these kinds of offers into James Harden. Still, that was after months and months of negotiations. The Clippers do not have to give up George in a deal due to the fact that they have all of the leverage.