Rumors have been flying around that James Harden is stuck in a dilemma between Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers. There seem to be inside sources giving fans and experts enough confidence to claim that the star player will be re-signed by the Sixers.
The Rockets ended the previous season positively about roping James in with them. However, sportswriter Zach Lowe said that the Sixer’s decision to let go of Doc Rivers as Coach was the beginning of the end for Harden.
This has led the rumor mills rolling and people within the sport and around have been talking about the point guard being retained by Philadelphia.
James Harden expected to re-sign with Sixers
Since December last year, a Harden-Houston union appeared almost inevitable. James Harden took the Sixer’s overtime defeat on December 5th to heart and has been considering the Rockets thereafter.
It was previously understood that the Philly point guard would enter free agency in July, instead of accepting his $35.6 million deal. But, the tables have turned in the past few days, according to Zach Lowe:
“The breaks have now been pumped, like slammed on, around the league to the point that I bet if you poll 50 front office executives, the majority of them would guess he’s going back to Philly. I don’t know what the hell is going to happen. We’ll see.”
Following Doc Rivers’ firing in May, Harden hinted at exit
According to Lowe, after Sixers management decided to part ways with the team’s head coach Doc Rivers, Harden chose to leave. Daryl Morey, president of basketball operations, in Philadelphia, expressed the franchise’s desire to retain James. Morey had also been pivotal in James’s stint with the Rockets, while he served as the team’s manager from 2007-20.
James Harden has been an amazing player in the league, leading the assists table with 10.7 dimes on average, and 21.0 points across 58 games. He said after losing the Eastern Conference Semi-finals, “We are a really good team. We were just a couple shots away from being in the Eastern Conference Finals…I feel like we have a solid team.”
The speculations are furling after Lowe’s podcast revelation. Everyone wants to know for sure where the guard wants to lend his support. Obviously, with a star player like Harden, chances of success easily multiply.
Which team do you think will ultimately manage to sign James Harden? Which team can he do the best justice for and why? Make sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments.
