Philly apparently believes it has a team that can compete for a championship if Harden sticks around.
The Philadelphia 76ers have had one major question hanging over their entire offseason: What is going to happen to James Harden? Right before the start of free agency this year, Harden picked up his player option for 2023-24 and requested a trade, with reports indicating that the Los Angeles Clippers were his preferred landing spot.
But there’s been one problem: Philly has only wanted to make a deal that keeps open their championship window, and it’s been made clear that they wouldn’t make a trade just to appease Harden if it came at the expense of their ability to compete for a title. And according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the team has decided that there’s no deal out there that would keep their championship hopes alive, and as a result, have determined that all trade talks for Harden will come to an end.
