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With James Harden set to be traded, the Philadelphia 76ers may be looking to complement reigning MVP Joel Embiid with another superstar. If they were to do that, Bleacher Report’s Bryan Toporek believes it’d be a mistake to take what they get for “The Beard,” package it with Tyrese Maxey, and attempt to land Damian Lillard with those pieces.
“This is probably going to be unpopular, but… I don’t think the Sixers should package whatever they get for Harden with Tyrese Maxey to trade for Damian Lillard,” Toporek wrote.
On June 29, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Harden was planning on opting into his $35.6 million player option with the intention of working with the Sixers’ front office on finding the 2018 MVP a new home.
“Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden has exercised his $35.6 million option for the 2023-24 season, clearing the way for the organization and the 10-time All-Star to work together on finding a trade, sources told ESPN on Thursday,” Wojnarowski prefaced before saying, “The Sixers started making calls on Harden trades Thursday as it became clearer that he wouldn’t be declining the option and entering free agency, sources said.”
Clippers, Knicks Emerge as James Harden Trade Suitors
As Wojnarowski reports, Harden and the general manager that built the Houston Rockets roster around him for eight years, Daryl Morey, decided together to find the 10-time All-Star guard a new home; a home that could be the Los Angeles Clippers or New York Knicks.
“Harden, 33, could’ve negotiated a new deal with the Sixers upon becoming a free agent, but he decided with president of basketball operations Daryl Morey that they would start working on a way to move Harden less than two years after his arrival in a February 2022 trade with the Brooklyn Nets, sources said” Wojnarowski prefaced before saying, “Among the teams expected to have an interest in acquiring Harden are the LA Clippers and New York Knicks, sources said.”
Clippers stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George “are said to be on board with the idea of Harden potentially joining their core,” per The Athletic’s Sam Amick.
Damian Lillard Situation ‘Unchanged’ Per NBA Insider
As Wojnarowski put it, the situation surrounding a Lillard trade from the Portland Trail Blazers is “unchanged” at this point amid ever-evolving speculation on his future.
“I’m not really sure anything has changed about his future in Portland,” Wojnarowski reported. “For all the speculation, Damian Lillard is where he’s been for at least the last couple of years with a young roster, Scoot Henderson and a very, very good draft class by the Blazers last week, And the opportunity now for them to re-sign Jerami Grant, to look out in the trade market and see are there veterans they can bring in, whether it’s with one of their exceptions, with a trade and see whether they can continue to build around Damian Lillard, who has said numerous times that he wants to be there.”
The Trail Blazers have met with the likes of Draymond Green this offseason in an attempt to build a contender around Lillard, but the four-time NBA Champion forward could return to the only franchise he ever knew, the Golden State Warriors, instead.
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