Joel Embiid's 76ers Future Questioned by NBA Fans after James Harden, Clippers Trade

In the wake of 10-time All-Star James Harden getting traded to the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday morning, some NBA fans are wondering if the reigning NBA MVP in center Joel Embiid could be the next Philadelphia 76ers superstar to land elsewhere.

After months of rumors and speculation regarding a potential Harden trade to the Clippers, it finally came to fruition Tuesday, as the the Sixers sent Harden, P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrusev to the Clippers for Marcus Morris, Robert Covington, Nicolas Batum, KJ Martin, a 2028 unprotected first-round pick, two second-round picks and a 2029 pick swap, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the Sixers are also getting the Clippers' 2026 first-round pick via the Oklahoma City Thunder as part of the deal.

Since acquiring him from the Brooklyn Nets during the 2021-22 season, Harden had been a key part of Philly's core along with Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris, but in trading him for depth pieces and draft picks, there is little doubt that the 76ers' roster experienced a downgrade Tuesday.

As a result, basketball fans on X, formerly known as Twitter, questioned if Embiid could follow in Harden's footsteps by eventually requesting a trade out of Philadelphia:

The Sixers have had some success early in the season and shown that they can win without Harden, posting a 2-1 record thus far, but the NBA is a superstar-driven league, and Philadelphia is now lacking in that department.

While Embiid is an unquestioned superstar and Maxey may be trending toward that status, the rest of the roster is primarily made up of veteran role players who aren't typically capable of taking over games.

Although Embiid is coming off his two best seasons, he and the Sixers have been unable to shake the narrative that they can't get over the hump during the preseason.

The 76ers have made six consecutive playoff appearances, but they have not made it past the second round during that stretch. Losing a player of Harden's caliber likely doesn't increase their chances of doing so either.

In 2021, the 76ers signed Embiid to a four-year, $213.8 million contract extension, meaning he is under contract through at least 2025-26 with a player option for 2026-27.

That suggests that unless Embiid demands a trade at some point, the Sixers aren't going to feel any pressure to move on from him in the near future.

During an appearance Tuesday on ESPN's Get Up, Wojnarowski suggested that the 76ers have no intention of trading Embiid and want to continue building around him.

Wojnarowski said Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey still feels the team can contend and has sights set on either making a trade at the deadline or going "star hunting" during the offseason for someone to pair with Embiid:

Embiid will turn 30 in March and he has a lengthy injury history, but he is playing the best basketball of his career in recent years, and the 76ers will likely be a title threat as long as he is healthy and on the roster.

The Sixers could get a massive haul of players and draft picks if they were to trade Embiid, but it is difficult to envision them doing so if they remain in playoff and championship contention as expected.