NBA Rumors: James Harden is ready to leave the Nets, per the Sixers

The Brooklyn Nets are at a major crossroads right now. They can either hold on to a reportedly disgruntled James Harden and try to win an NBA championship this season and risk losing him for nothing, or they can trade him for Ben Simmons.

Philadelphia 76ers’ GM Daryl Morey— who has close ties with Harden from his days in Houston — is ready to pull the trigger and make a deal right away. Then again, he’s confident he can get him in the offseason if the Nets refuse to play ball.

The trade deadline is zooming in and the word around the league is that Harden is ready to leave Brooklyn, either right now or in the offseason. Once again, Sean Marks has his back against the wall.

NBA Trade Rumors: Sixers Think James Harden Will Leave The Nets

(via Sam Amick of The Athletic)

“This is what I do know. I know the Nets continue to publicly claim that the level of Harden’s discontent is overblown, and I know that the Sixers — whose front office is run by the guy with more Harden history than any other executive in former Rockets general manager Daryl Morey — truly believe that Harden is heading elsewhere this summer.

It could be Philly, or the Clippers, or some other place where he doesn’t have to wonder if Kyrie Irving is playing that night or if his well-chronicled style of play will be pegged as a problem whenever times are tough. As our Shams Charania reported recently, there have been “growing concerns” about Harden’s style of play of late — and that was before he started missing games with a sore hamstring. But the Sixers, sources say, strongly believe he won’t re-sign with the Nets and remain hopeful that Brooklyn sees the light before the deadline buzzer sounds.”

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NBA Trade deadline: Joel Embiid takes a huge shot at Ben Simmons

The Nets think Harden’s reported desire to leave is just ‘outside noise’ and may want to take a risk. Then again, landing Ben Simmons after all they had to give up to get Harden seems like a much better outcome than just watching the former MVP walk away for nothing.