The Los Angeles Clippers are interested in trading for Philadelphia 76ers stars James Harden and Tobias Harris, according to NBA insider Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
Harden wants to get traded to the Clippers, while Harris previously played for LAC.
“But as this final week before free agency melted down, the Los Angeles Clippers canvassed the league for trade opportunities regarding Norman Powell and Marcus Morris, league sources told Yahoo Sports, and contacted the Sixers about various targets that included Harden and Tobias Harris,” Fischer wrote. “It’s difficult to parse the exact sequence of events from there, but Harden and his representation were clearly not confident in the All-Star guard’s pending contract scenarios with the Sixers.
“His decision to opt-in and seek a trade aligns quite perfectly with Los Angeles’ long quest to land a premium lead guard to run the Clippers’ offense with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. And Harden, according to league sources with knowledge of the situation, prefers to land with Los Angeles.”
Harden opted into his 2023-24 player option and is working with the Sixers on a trade. The three-time scoring champion is extremely upset at how Philadelphia handled his possible free agency and has made his dissatisfaction clear to the franchise.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: James Harden, Tobias Harris, Philadelphia 76ers & Los Angeles Clippers Updates
Meanwhile, Harris has been the subject of trade rumors and heavy backlash from Sixers fans ever since he signed a massive five-year, $180 million deal in July 2019. He’ll make $39.3 million next season, the final year of his contract.
The Clippers are focused on getting Harden, who wants to play with stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. It’s unknown if the franchise can acquire both Harden and Harris from the Sixers.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: James Harden, Tobias Harris, Philadelphia 76ers & Los Angeles Clippers Updates
Harden averaged 21.0 points, 6.1 rebounds and 10.7 assists this past season, while Harris put up 14.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. The Sixers lost to the Boston Celtics in the 2023 Eastern Conference Semifinals in seven games.
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