According to NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Philadelphia 76ers are at the “top of the list” for acquiring James Harden from the Houston Rockets. This comes after details of a trade package for Ben Simmons and three first-round picks in exchange for Harden came out yesterday.
The former MVP has made it abundantly clear that he wants out of Houston, going so far as to say he is “unmoved” by the organization’s acquisition of John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins according to Ramona Shelburne and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. As someone already close to the situation, Wojnarowski’s opinion probably holds a certain amount of weight. When Wojnarowski appeared earlier this morning on ESPN’s morning show “Get Up”, he stated that Brooklyn and Philadelphia were the two teams that Harden most wants to go to.
The Senior insider went on to say that the Rockets organization has been working with the two teams to try and get maximum value for, “a player they consider one of the best 5 in the league and they certainly aren’t just going to give away”. He went on to point out that the Harden trade is tricky because, rather than having one year left on his contract with Houston, he has two which makes teams more reluctant to trade that many assets for a long-term commitment.
“He wants a trade. Brooklyn and Philadelphia are still the two teams he would most like to go to. And the Rockets continue to work on trying to see if there’s a way that they can get a maximum value for a player they consider one of the best five in the league. They certainly aren’t just going to give him away.”
“There are so few who have the combination of draft picks, a young player that would interest the Rockets, and also being a contender. There are very few. Philly’s at the top of that list.”
The Nets and 76ers are the two teams that have the ability to trade for Harden, it’s just a matter of exactly how much can Houston get and Brooklyn or Philly hang on to.
