No. 3 — Washington Wizards
The Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers are pretty much the only two teams to consider in the “James Harden Sweepstakes” this upcoming summer, but one long-shot to keep tabs on are the Washington Wizards.
The Wizards have been looking to build something special for years now and while they had success with John Wall and Bradley Beal during the 2016-17 season when they made the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Washington has only been to the playoffs three of the last six seasons.
50% is definitely not a bad percentage when you compare them to the Timberwolves and the Kings in the Western Conference, but the Eastern Conference is very strong this season. In order to be something special, you need multiple high-level talents, which is the Wizards’ problem right now.
Bradley Beal is the only All-Star-level talent on the Wizards’ roster currently and while Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and others are key secondary talents, this team’s ceiling looks to be the Eastern Conference Semifinals right now.
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They desperately need to add another star next to Beal long-term, which is why pursuing James Harden could be worth consideration.
Whether or not Harden would consider a move to the Washington Wizards is a whole separate question, but the fit could actually make a ton of sense. He is the missing piece for them right now since finding stability in the backcourt next to Beal has been a problem over the years and Washington is a team on the rise in the East.
Having young talents like Deni Avdija, Corey Kispert, Rui Hachimura and Kyle Kuzma, there is a lot to like about the Wizards moving forward.
Cap-wise, the only way the Wizards can make this move for Harden work would be through a sign-and-trade, but it is hard to imagine that this deal would be done straight up with the Nets.
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A few other teams would likely have to get involved, similar to the sign-and-trade deal between the Nets and Wizards this past offseason that sent Spencer Dinwiddie to Washington.
Maybe James Harden is not a target of the Washington Wizards looking ahead to this offseason, but they are certainly a team to watch in terms of adding another star in the near future.
