After a full summer and fall of rumors, The 76ers will trade NBA star James Harden to Los Angeles. He is joining the Clippers star duo of Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. He will also be reuniting with former Rockets and Thunder Teammate, Russell Westbrook.
The Process of Dissatisfaction
Many fans of the NBA, whether they be fans of James Harden, the 76ers, or both, knew this announcement was coming. For one, the topic of Harden being traded to other teams was talked about since their playoff exit and then on. It became even evident when James Harden himself at a promotion event called out the Philadelphia 76ers President.
For context, Harden already expressed his concerns about staying on the 76ers on August 14 and 17. He told a reporter that he won’t “perform the services called for under his contract” unless he’s traded. Not only did Philadelphia not grant the trade request, but they also called no deal on Harden’s player option for this season. This added fuel to the flame when it came to Harden’s feelings about Daryl Morey, and he let his opinion be known during their promotional event in China.
“Daryl Morely is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of, ” James Harden said at the event. “Let me say it again: Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of.”
The NBA fined James Harden $100,000 for his comments.
The Process of Elimination
The second reason why most fans are not surprised about the Harden trade is because they’ve seen this experience more than once. NBA forward Jimmy Butler was traded away to the Miami Heat after being a pivotal player on the 76ers. The irony of this is, that after the trade Jimmy Butler took the Heat to the finals twice while the Sixers struggled to get past the semi-finals.
Butler also had the honor of being one of the teams who stopped Philly in their tracks in the playoffs. After eliminating them in the 2019 playoffs, he walked into the locker room saying “Tobias Harris over me ?” Butler referred to the 76ers giving Tobias Harris a five-year-180 million dollar deal at the time.
Even when they had Jimmy, the 76ers haven’t done anything special since they drafted Joel Embiid. Embiid may be the reigning season MVP, a multiple-time all-star, and an All-NBA center, but his playoff success is lacking. Eastern conference teams like the Celtics, Heat, Raptors, Cavaliers, and the Bucks made it to or won the NBA finals.
In 2021, The Philadelphia 76ers lost to the Atlanta Falcons 4-3 to make it into the Eastern Conference finals. This may seem normal, but Philly at the time had the number one seed to the Hawks’ number five. The reason they lost is the 17 turnovers over the course of the game, eight of those from Embiid.
Who is in the Trade Other than Harden?
James Harden is a part of a three-way trade between the 76ers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and the Los Angeles Clippers. Harden, with P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrušev go to L.A for Marcus Morris, Robert Covington, Nic Batum, and KJ Martin. The Thunder will give Philly a 2028 unprotected first-round pick, two second-round picks, a 2029 pick swap, and an additional first-round pick. In order for Philly to have roster space for these future picks, they waived veteran guard Danny Green.
The Clippers will send a 2027 first-round pick to Oklahoma City, moving a 2026 protected first-round pick to Philly. Los Angeles will also send a second-round pick for 2024 and 2029 to the Sixers.
Written By Daylontie Jasper
Source:
ESPN: Clippers land James Harden in blockbuster 76ers trade; By Adrian Wojnarowski
CBS Philadelphia: James Harden fined $100,00 for calling Sixer president Daryl Morey a liar; by CBS reporters
NBC Sports: Jimmy Butler “Tobias Harris over me ?”; by Dan Feldman
Feature Image Courtesy of Erik Drost‘s Flickr Page- Creative Commons License
Image Courtesy of Bryan Horowitz‘s Flickr Page- Creative Commons License
