The Cleveland Cavaliers might have more competition when they look to keep James Harden in free agency this offseason. Most expected Cleveland to easily retain Harden, but they’ve yet to agree to a new deal like other franchises have done with their free agents. The Minnesota Timberwolves apparently viewed Harden as a realistic option to upgrade at the point guard position until they found an easier path towards trading for LaMelo Ball.
Yahoo’s Kelly Iko revealed that both Harden and Ja Morant were both on Minnesota’s radar until they found a new target:
“The Wolves, after sending Julius Randle to Brooklyn, were left with a $33 million trade exception and a cap book $66 million leaner, while continuing to signal intentions to add a quality point guard, sources say (a pursuit that at one time included Cleveland’s James Harden and Memphis’ Ja Morant).”
Both Morant and Harden were named as players that the Timberwolves hoped to use their spending money on. A trade sending Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets for nothing in return opened more financial flexibility. Minnesota ultimately decided that trading for Ball from the Charlotte Hornets was an easier path and made their roster quite younger moving forward.
Will Teams Challenge Cleveland For James Harden
Cleveland made the bold move of trading for Harden ahead of the trade deadline to improve their NBA Championship chances. The Cavaliers sacrificed younger point guard Darius Garland to get more experience and raise their overall ceiling with Harden replacing him.
Most pundits expected Cleveland to quickly retain Harden, but they’ve yet to figure out a contract extension. Other teams will be able to offer Harden deals in less than a week to complicate his status with the franchise. Other teams could follow Minnesota’s mindset of making a trade to open more spending to go after Harden.
Morant stands out as a more realistic name for the Miami Heat and other franchises needing to make a trade to bring back that much money. Harden will need teams to offer sign and trades or find other avenues to add him if he wants someone to outspend Cleveland on the free agent market.
Does LeBron James Impact James Harden?
The biggest “what if” scenario of the offseason includes the Cavaliers as the biggest threat to stealing LeBron James from the Los Angeles Lakers. James has not talked to the Lakers in over a week about his contract, and Cleveland is the only team with a confirmed shot at signing him.
Harden would likely have to return to the Cavaliers in this scenario to make them real contenders with LeBron on the roster. The rumored move would see the Lakers wanting Jarrett Allen in a sign and trade to make both sides happy.
Going after James would just make it more likely that Harden returns to Cleveland. However, the one concern would be the Cavaliers questioning the money that Harden wants after another inconsistent postseason. Another suitor is likely needed for Harden to get the figure he wanted after forcing his way out of Los Angeles.
Title Contender Had Hopes Of Stealing James Harden From Cavs