James Harden Rumors: Clippers Pursuing NBA Draft Assets for Potential 76ers Trade
The Los Angeles Clippers are looking to gather more future draft picks as they attempt to trade for Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden, according to Zach Harper and Shams Charania of The Athletic.
"I'm told LA has continued to pursue additional draft assets from other teams in order to improve their offer to the 76ers," Charania said.
While the Clippers have attempted to trade for Harden throughout the offseason, Philadelphia president of basketball operations Daryl Morey hasn't been willing to accept a lesser package for the 10-time All-Star.
Morey has reportedly been the one "holding up the deal" in trade talks between the two teams (via Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer).
While the Clippers seem to be the only organization in the running for Harden, they don't have the rights to their own first round pick until 2027.
The 34-year-old opted into his $35.6 million player option for the 2023-24 season with an expectation that he would be traded. With the 76ers' opener on Oct. 26 rapidly approaching, that expectation has yet to become reality.
Speaking with reporters on Friday, Harden refused to mention Morey by name and only referred to him as "the front office" when discussing Philadelphia's Eastern Conference Semifinals loss, according to ESPN's Tim Bontemps.
"Me and the front office had a very, very good relationship for a decade," Harden said. "There was constant communication, you know what I mean? There was no communication once we lost."
With the former MVP reiterating his desire to play elsewhere, it appears that the Clippers are looking to get a deal done before the start of the regular season.
"For me, it's just trusting the people that you've known for a decade. When I got traded here, my whole thing was I wanted to retire a Sixer," Harden said (via Bontemps). "I wanted to be here and retire a Sixer. The front office didn't have that in their future plan. It's literally out of my control."
