Philadelphia 76ers have had to endure a lot coming into this season. They remain without the services of Ben Simmons and are still finding his right replacement. However, despite losing the star, their record stands impressive at 26-13. Joel Embiid has been a beast this season yet again. However, according to an NBA insider, the 76ers plan to pair Embiid with Nets’ James Harden next season.
Like Simmons, Harden and the Rockets had a similar situation. The Beard wanted to go to a team where he could win and he forced the Rockets into trading him. While he did get his first option, the other team he looked to join were the Philadelphia 76ers. The main reason for this is the connection he shares with ex Rockets general manager, Daryl Morey.
According to Brian Windhorst, Morey could look to off load a star from the team to bring in James Harden next season.
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Could James Harden and Joel Embiid be a duo next season?
In the recent episode of Windhorst’s podcast, he spoke about Morey’s future plans with the 76ers organisation. While there is no confirmation, Windhorst revealed that Morey may offload Tobias Harris and make an attempt to bring in James Harden next season.
He said: “Executives think one of their options, it’s not the thing they may be most likely to do, but one of their options is they want to make a run at James Harden next summer. Harden can opt out of his contract, he elected not to extend, obviously there’s the connection with Daryl Morey, they tried to get him in a trade last year. I don’t know whether he would leave the [Brooklyn] Nets.”
Report: 76ers could look to offload Tobias Harris’ contract to make a run at James Harden in the summer https://t.co/HEnU4XXepN
— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) January 11, 2022
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With his current contract, Harden has a player option and can opt out of his contract next season. While he hasn’t shown any signs of wanting to leave the Nets, his connection with Daryl Morey could come through in such a situation. While there is time for developments to take place, Windhorst revealed even off loading player may not guarantee Haren’s price, which according to him would be around $48 million. However, a Harden-Embiid duo would surely be one to watch.
Harris has served as a second option scorer even with Simmons in the lineup. But if Harden enters the picture, things will completely turn around. Embiid is improving with every season and is a potential MVP candidate. Dor Harden, he has got back his scoring prowess and is gearing up for yet another memorable season. These two could run havoc around the league and Philadelphia would become hot favorites in no time.
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Do you think a James Harden and Joel Embiid duo could work out? Let us know in the comments below.