{"id":49836,"date":"2023-04-22T08:30:39","date_gmt":"2023-04-22T12:30:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=49836"},"modified":"2023-04-21T21:11:24","modified_gmt":"2023-04-22T01:11:24","slug":"james-harden-continues-to-be-linked-to-houston-rockets-by-nba-insiders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/04\/22\/james-harden-continues-to-be-linked-to-houston-rockets-by-nba-insiders\/","title":{"rendered":"James Harden Continues to Be Linked to Houston Rockets by NBA Insiders"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hardeja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>James Harden<\/strong><\/a> and the Philadelphia 76ers are in the midst of what they hope to be a long <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/04\/11\/2023-nba-play-in-games-evaluating-the-teams-strengths-and-weaknesses\/\" target=\"_self\">NBA<\/a> playoff run. How far the 76ers go could determine whether Harden stays in the City of Brotherly Love or departs for Houston, according to ESPN&#8217;s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.espn.com\/espnradio\/podcast\/archive\/_\/id\/26974840\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Adrian Wojnarowski via his podcast<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201c<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">James Harden\u2019s future is very unclear in Philadelphia.<\/span><\/i> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Houston is very much in play for him. And I think a lot may depend on [whether the Sixers] make a run and win and it\u2019s easy to pay him long-term big money, or he just wants to be back in Houston. Win or lose he goes, or it\u2019s dependent on the team\u2019s success<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2>James Harden Continues to Be Linked to Houston Rockets<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is not the first time that <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/03\/31\/the-best-2023-nba-futures-bets-as-season-winds-down\/\" target=\"_self\">NBA insiders<\/a> have mentioned Harden&#8217;s interest in reuniting with the Rockets next season. Wojnarowski first reported that was the case back in late December, and then on March 1, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/theathletic.com\/4261804\/2023\/03\/01\/james-harden-houston-rockets-nba-free-agency\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kelly Iko of the Atheltic<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> reiterated Harden&#8217;s possible return to Houston. Iko also indicated that the Rockets planned an aggressive approach in pursuing the 33-year-old.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Philadelphia holds a commanding 3-0 lead in their first-round series over the Brooklyn Nets. Harden, coming off one of his better seasons in recent years, has struggled against the Nets. His best game was Game 3, where he got ejected for a groin shot on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/o\/onealro01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Royce O&#8217;Neal<\/strong><\/a> in the third quarter.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This got James Harden ejected. An absolute joke. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/m8T4h61eil\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/m8T4h61eil<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NBCSPhilly\/status\/1649222268445249537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">April 21, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Harden finished the game with 21 points on 8 of 15 shooting and 3 of 7 from beyond the arc in 29 minutes. He grabbed five rebounds, doled out four assists, and committed two turnovers. However, the 6-5 point guard ended with a -15 plus\/minus rating, which was the worst on the team by 14 points.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I have no idea,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/sixers\/sixers-james-harden-ejected-sixers-vs-nets-game-3-nba-playoffs\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Harden said about getting ejected<\/a>. &#8220;But for me, to get my first ejection on a play like that where there&#8217;s no hostile act, that&#8217;s unacceptable. I&#8217;ve seen other calls, other plays and things like that \u2026 but come on.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Harden has struggled with his shot for much of the series though he has been on target from deep. His assists are down, and his turnovers are up.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the series, Harden averages\u00a0 17.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 3.7 turnovers. He is a +3.3 plus\/minus while producing a shooting slash line of .388\/.429\/.667.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Harden Can Be Cantankerous<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/03\/15\/why-the-76ers-wont-win-a-championship\/\" target=\"_self\">Philadelphia<\/a> is Harden&#8217;s fifth team. He forced his way out of Houston and Brooklyn. He almost did the same in Philly last season.<\/p>\n<p>While the rumor mill is flowing, it is not a foregone conclusion that Harden is leaving Philly. He has a $35.64 million player option for next season. The 76ers had its best regular season since 2000-2001, and his relationship with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/e\/embiijo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Joel Embiid<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/coaches\/riverdo01c.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Doc Rivers<\/strong><\/a> has improved. Harden also has solid relationships with Sixers&#8217; GM Daryl Morey and CEO Tad Brown. However, good friend Michael Ruben, who played a huge role in Harden wanting to join the Sixers, sold his minority stake in the team.<\/p>\n<p>Philadelphia can offer Harden the most money this offseason as the 76ers hold his Bird rights. The Sixers can offer him a\u00a0 max deal worth four years and $210 million, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spotrac.com\/news\/next-contract-series-james-harden-1811\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">per Sportac<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>However, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/sixers\/nba-rumors-james-harden-not-looking-long-term-deal-sixers-anywhere-2022-free-agency\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ESPN&#8217;s Zach Lowe<\/a> believes that Harden may not want a max deal. Lowe stated there are rumors Harden may prefer multiple short deals similar to the one he signed this past off-season.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>&#8220;There are a lot of whispers around the league that he wants to continue cycling through, like, 1+1 kinds of deals.&#8221;<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Harden has until June 29 to accept his player option. Other teams besides the Sixers and Rockets are expected to pursue Harden if he opts out. But the following looks at how Harden&#8217;s decision affects the two major players.<\/p>\n<h3>Effect on 76ers<\/h3>\n<p>It is believed the Sixers could overhaul the roster if they cannot get past the second round of the playoffs. The 76ers have 10 players in tote for 2023-24. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/harremo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Montrezl Harrell<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/houseda01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Danuel House Jr<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong>also have player options. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/n\/niangge01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Georges Niang<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/miltosh01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Shake Milton<\/strong><\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcdanja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> <strong>Jalen McDaniels<\/strong><\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/dedmode01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Dewayne Dedmon<\/strong><\/a> are unrestricted free agents. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/r\/reedpa01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Paul Reed<\/a>,<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mccluma01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Mac McClung<\/strong><\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/k\/kinglo02.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Louis King<\/strong> <\/a>are restricted free agents.<\/p>\n<p>If Harden opts out, that would leave the 76ers with a max cap space of $12 million. The Sixers would also have an open spot in the starting lineup. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/meltode01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>De&#8217;Anthony Melton<\/strong><\/a>, who started 58 games, would likely slide back into the starting role alongside <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/maxeyty01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Tyrese Maxey<\/strong><\/a> in the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/04\/20\/potential-portland-trail-blazers-backcourt-shakeup-could-anfernee-simons-or-shaeden-sharpe-be-traded\/\" target=\"_self\">backcourt<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>It will be surprising if House or Harrell don&#8217;t opt- into their player options. The 76ers will also try to keep Niang, McDaniels, and Reed.<\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s say Harden leaves, and the five above players return. Therefore, the Sixers would have three open roster spots. The 76ers do not have any draft picks in 2023 though they have two trade exceptions, including a valuable non-taxpayer mid-level exception.<\/p>\n<p>Biggest needs if Harden opts out: backup point guard and shooting guard.<\/p>\n<h3>Effect on Rockets<\/h3>\n<p>The Rockets are a different team than when Harden was last in Houston. But the city has a &#8220;magnetic pull&#8221; on the 14-year veteran, who spent over seven years there. He still has a good relationship with team owner Tilman Fertitta and has maintained strong ties in Houston.<\/p>\n<p>Houston went 22-60 last season though the Rockets have plenty of young talent. It was the third straight season that the Rockets finished with a losing campaign. They need a coach, as the Rockets decided not to bring Stephen Silas back.<\/p>\n<p>The Rockets have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spotrac.com\/nba\/houston-rockets\/cap\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">11 players under contract next season<\/a> with about $64 million of cap space. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/martike04.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Kenyon Martin Jr<\/strong><\/a>., who has a cheap team option, will almost assuredly be on the roster though <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/n\/nixda01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Daishen Nix<\/strong><\/a> has a non-guaranteed deal. The Rockets own two first-round draft picks in 2023, their own (projected No. 2) and Milwaukee&#8217;s (No. 20).<\/p>\n<p>If Harden joins the Rockets, he projects to be joined in the backcourt by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/greenja05.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Jalen Green<\/strong><\/a>. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/smithja05.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jabari Smith Jr<\/a>.,<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/martike04.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Kenyon Martin Jr.<\/strong>,<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sengual01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Alperen Sengun<\/strong><\/a> would likely fill the rest of the starting five. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/p\/porteke02.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Porter Jr<\/a>.<\/strong>, &#8212; <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/02\/01\/trade-ideas-for-chicago-bulls-to-kick-start-their-rebuild\/\" target=\"_self\">a trade candidate<\/a>&#8212;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/e\/easonta01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Tari Eason<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sengual01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Usman Garcia<\/strong><\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/t\/tateja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Jae&#8217;Sean Tate<\/strong><\/a> would be the leading candidates for the second unit. Porter Jr. was the Rockets&#8217; starting point guard this past campaign.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers are in the midst of what they hope to be a long NBA playoff run. How far the 76ers go could determine whether Harden stays in the City of Brotherly Love or departs for Houston, according to ESPN&#8217;s Adrian Wojnarowski via his podcast.\u00a0 \u201cJames Harden\u2019s future is very unclear [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3146,"featured_media":49848,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,2,31,62,13],"tags":[444,4774],"class_list":["post-49836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-featured","category-rockets","category-nba","category-76ers","tag-james-harden","tag-rumors"],"modified_by":"Zach Kircher","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49836","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49836"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49836\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49848"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49836"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49836"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49836"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}