James Harden Trade Rumors: Teams Hesitant to Deal 'Real Stuff' for 76ers Star

The Philadelphia 76ers may not be finding a very robust trade market for James Harden at the moment.

"I have heard—I just don't think there's a lot out there right now for James Harden," ESPN's Zach Lowe said on The Lowe Post podcast on Wednesday (36:00 mark). "I just don't sense that there's a big appetite for teams to trade Philadelphia real stuff."

As for the team that has been most linked to a potential Harden trade, the Los Angeles Clippers, Lowe said talks between the sides potentially haven't progressed very far.

"From what I've heard they have been reluctant so far to offer [Terance] Mann, picks, maybe even [Norman] Powell," he said. "And I don't even know that the two sides have really even had super significant dialogue."

It isn't hard to see why Harden's market might be tepid.

For starters, he's entering the final year of his contract after exercising his player option. There's no guarantee that he'll be anything more than a one-year rental.

Add in the fact that he's now reportedly requesting a third trade in as many years, and teams might be less inclined to trust that they could get a long-term commitment from him. That makes parting with quality assets harder to justify.

But there are also very real questions about whether Harden has perhaps lost a step. Dan Devine of Yahoo Sports offered a statistical breakdown of that concern:

"Harden averaged 13.5 drives to the basket per game last season—10 fewer than he did five seasons ago. He scored fewer points off those drives than he had since 2013-14. A career-low 25 percent of his shot attempts came at the rim."

"Second Spectrum tracks a stat called 'blow-by rate,' which is just what it sounds like—a measurement of how often a ball-handler dusts his defender off the dribble. In his last full season in Houston, Harden blew by his defender 10.1 times per 100 drives. Last season in Philly, the rate was down to 3.7 per 100."

That isn't necessarily a huge surprise. Harden is 33, soon to be 34. He's dealt with numerous injuries in recent seasons. Despite that fact, he still averaged an NBA-best 10.7 assists per game last season and his playmaking helped Joel Embiid win an MVP.

But the concerns about a long-term commitment, his health, that first step and his long-running woes in the playoffs are all legitimate for potential trade suitors. And for the Sixers, giving up Harden for pennies on the dollar risks wasting a year of Embiid's prime, so they aren't going to be in a rush to take a bad deal.

Add it up, and this has the makings of a situation that could drag out well through the summer and perhaps even into the season.