Getty James Harden and Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers.
Few teams face as much win-now pressure as the Philadelphia 76ers do this season. After failing to make it past the conference semifinals during the Joel Embiid era, it isn’t hyperbole to suggest that the rest of the Sixers’ decade hinges on the next few months.
Another bit factoring into the high stakes: James Harden‘s looming free-agency decision. On Christmas Day, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Harden is interested in reuniting with the Houston Rockets, the team he spent the bulk of his career and won an MVP award with.
Since then, the Houston-Harden whispers have only grown louder.
But that hasn’t stopped Harden from staying focused on the task at hand: winning a ring with the Sixers this season and maintaining chemistry with his Philly teammates.
“We’re just comfortable. Just knowing each other, on and off the court. I think off the court is just as valuable as knowing somebody on the court. It helps actually. When you’re comfortable it makes the game a lot easier,” Harden said, per Sixers team reporter Lauren Rosen.
James Harden on the @sixers‘ growing bond & chemistry:
“We’re just comfortable. Just knowing each other, on and off the court. I think off the court is just as valuable as knowing somebody on the court. It helps actually. When you’re comfortable it makes the game a lot easier.”
Sixers Split on Harden’s Potential Departure
A recent report by Kelly Iko and Sam Amick of The Athletic shed light on where the Sixers stand on Harden’s potential departure, with the organization apparently split on the guard’s future.
“According to a high-ranking Sixers source with knowledge of the team’s operation, they are ‘unconcerned’ about possibly losing him this summer,” Iko and Amick reported. “This confidence, it seems, is rooted in the belief that only Philadelphia can provide the two things Harden holds most dear: A chance to contend for a title, and maximum earning potential.”
But the confidence felt in the front office is not quite mirrored on the floor.
“And why, as is the case, do some key Sixers players privately believe that Harden may make this Houston reunion a reality?,” Iko and Amick also wrote.
There are two separate ways of taking the Harden news. On one hand, perhaps the rumors are to be taken at face value, with Harden seriously interested in a Rockets reunion. If that’s the case, there’s little the Sixers can offer other than Harden’s most talented co-star in Embiid to dissuade him from leaving town.
But on the other hand, this could all be a leverage play.
The Sixers own Harden’s bird rights, meaning Philadelphia is the only team that can offer Harden a full five-year, $269 million deal this summer.
Thus, the continued Houston links could be Harden’s way to leverage the Sixers into handing him the full bag, likely the last major contract of his career.
Harden Hasn’t Denied Rockets Desire
It’s also worth noting that Harden’s infatuation with Houston still exists, a note pointed out by ESPN’s Tim MacMahon recently.
“James Harden still spends a lot of time in Houston,” MacMahon said on ESPN’s Hoop Collective podcast. “Spends his summers in Houston. Works out at the Rockets’ facility on a regular basis. It’s a very real possibility. And Harden, by the way, never shot it down. He just said ‘I don’t know where that came from.’”
A playmaker of Harden’s ilk could work wonders for a Rockets team that is sitting 29th in assists in the NBA this season. It’s not difficult to imagine Harden resuming his role as a brilliant playmaker, unlocking Jalen Green’s offensive potential while also providing open looks for Jabari Smith, who has struggled so far in his rookie season.