James Harden also has 76ers on trade list; Rockets open to keeping him

Philadelphia has joined Brooklyn as a preferred destination, but Houston remains “fully comfortable” with keeping both Harden and Westbrook.

In addition to the Brooklyn Nets, Houston Rockets superstar James Harden also has the Philadelphia 76ers on his list of preferred trade destinations, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.

However, Houston is “fully comfortable keeping Harden and Russell Westbrook” into the 2020-21 season, per Charania. Both All-Star guards are under contract for at least two more seasons.

According to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets are intent on trying to restore Harden’s confidence in Houston as a contender by bolstering their roster during the current offseason.

Moreover, the Rockets aren’t particularly incentivized to begin a rebuilding process this season, since Oklahoma City has the right to swap first-round draft picks with Houston in 2021 (but not in 2022 or 2023). That’s why the general expectation has been for Houston to delay any blockbuster moves until at least the 2021 offseason.

However, if the Rockets were blown away by an offer in the interim, it’s possible they could move up the timetable to 2020 — especially if they concede that Harden is likely to leave at some point, regardless (and if they’re skeptical in their ability to legitimately contend for a title next season, even if they keep him). Per ESPN, Houston “would require a monstrous return of players, draft picks, and pick swaps.”

That’s where the presence of the 76ers and former GM Daryl Morey on Harden’s preferred list could be important. With a 24-year-old All-Star in Ben Simmons potentially available and under contract for the next five seasons, he appears to be a far superior asset than anything from Brooklyn (assuming that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving aren’t options).

The NBA’s trade moratorium was officially lifted Monday, and free agency is set to open on Friday evening. With training camp for the 2020-21 season starting on Tuesday, Dec. 1, the Rockets and their former MVPs would like to find a resolution to this saga sooner rather than later.

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