James Harden ‘now staying in Philadelphia’ as 76ers ‘end trade talks’ and prepare to stay in camp for the new season

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Philadelphia 76ers have ended trade talks over seven-time All-NBA guard James Harden.

Earlier this offseason, Harden and the 76ers mutually agreed to seek a trade after he signed up for the final year of his contract, and Philadelphia held talks with the Los Angeles Clippers several times this offseason in an attempt to negotiate a deal. come.

He has also been linked with a return to the Houston Rockets, where he spent the best seasons of his career.

Philadelphia now plans to have Harden return to the team during training camp, potentially setting the stage for a messy situation as Harden is adamant that he wants to be traded from the 76ers.

Harden averaged 21 points, 6.1 rebounds and 10.7 assists last season for the 76ers en route to the team’s Eastern Conference Semifinals loss to the Boston Celtics.

As the offseason progressed and Harden’s trade request was not granted, reports recently began to emerge that his relationship with 76ers general manager Daryl Morey had “essentially broken.”

Morey recently discussed a possible Harden trade when he told The Athletic:

James is a very good player. Unfortunately, he would rather be elsewhere at the moment. I do have a long relationship with him. I try to honor that.’

“But the reality is, when we look at a trade, it’s about two things. It will either be for a player who continues to help us be there like last year, with a 3-2 lead over one of the best teams in the East, the Celtics.”

“Obviously we couldn’t pull it off, but James was a big part of why we made it 3-2. Or we’re going to do it for something where we get enough draft picks and things like that in a deal so we can then turn that into a player who can also be a running mate with Joel.”

“If we don’t get a very good player or something we can make a very good player out of, then we’re just not going to do it.”

“If James changed his mind, we’d all be very happy… But right now he prefers to be traded and we’re trying to honor that.”

The 76ers believe they have a roster that can challenge for a championship with Harden in the fold and have been unwilling to accept a trade package that they say weakens their chances of doing so.

Uncertainty about Harden’s future and how it could affect the team has also apparently raised questions about the future of NBA MVP and fellow 76er Joel Embiid.

During an interview with Maverick Carter stated during an interview last week, Embiid said, “I just want to win a championship. Whatever it takes,’ ‘I don’t know where that’s going to be, whether it’s in Philly or somewhere else, I just want the chance to get to that.’

“I want to see how it feels to win that first one and then you can think about the next one. It’s not easy, but it takes more than one or two, three men. You have to have good people around you every day and myself, I work hard to be at that level so I can make it happen. So that’s what I’m working towards every day.’

Embiid also stated that he hopes Hardens’ “mindset can be changed” and admitted that he has tried to convince the seven-time All-NBA guard to stay in Philadelphia.

In the midst of his unfortunate off-season, Harden also recently took pictures with ESPN for posting a video of him mocking a pile of burgers while attending the Rolling Loud Music Festival in Miami, FL.