James Harden non-committal on potential Brooklyn contract extension

Harden’s contract status is worth monitoring, since Houston owns draft assets from Brooklyn for six years and will soon have cap room.

Former Rockets star James Harden appears to be non-committal regarding a potential contract extension with the Brooklyn Nets. The 32-year-old guard has a player option to enter free agency in 2022.

In a new interview with ESPN’s Malika Andrews, Harden said:

Over the course of my career, I’ve never been a free agent before. I’ve always just been loyal, just signing a contract extension and being there. I just want to take my time with it.

It’s going to be very, very difficult to leave here, but… or even to leave Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. I think this season, I just want to focus on winning a championship, and everything else will work itself out.

The future implications for Houston are potentially very significant. For starters, the Rockets own six future first-round draft assets from Brooklyn — the picks themselves in 2022, 2024, and 2026, and the right to swap selections (if Brooklyn’s pick is better) in 2023, 2025, and 2027. Clearly, the long-term outlook for the Nets would worsen if a perennial All-Star and recent MVP is no longer on the roster.

Second, Houston is poised to have lots of salary cap room in the years ahead. Harden has made it clear since leaving that he still shares a strong bond with Houston — and if young building blocks like Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. develop into stars, it’s not inconceivable that Harden might have some interest in a Rockets reunion down the line. Having the cap flexibility to easily make that happen can only help those chances.

For now, Harden is in a loaded situation with Durant and Irving in Brooklyn, with the Nets entering the 2021-22 season as NBA title favorites. But if things don’t go as planned, “The Beard” appears to be leaving the door open to a potential change down the road.

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