The idea surrounding James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers was that it would go into the offseason. The Sixers are willing to hold onto Ben Simmons until they get an offer that they like–which would be Harden in the summer–but now, it looks like the timeline has sped up.
The Brooklyn Nets are on a bit of a slide and they are now expected to take trade calls on Harden before the offseason. The Sixers will be first in line as they have had serious interest in The Beard for quite some time now.
Per Shams Charania of The Athletic and The Stadium, the trade talks between the two teams will heat up before the Feb. 10 trade deadline:
With the NBA trade deadline just days away on Feb. 10, the 76ers are expected to pursue Harden in the coming days and the Nets are believed to be open to discussing a deal, sources with knowledge of the situation tell The Athletic. There’s expectation that both the 76ers and Nets will engage in dialogue on a deal around Simmons for Harden this week, multiple sources say, with Philadelphia holding a chest of role players in Seth Curry, Tyrese Maxey and Matisse Thybulle that could sweeten a potential package. Still, there’s no urgency for Nets officials, who have had the steadfast belief that the current core, as is, has the means necessary for a championship. However, it’s believed that an opening exists should an offer elevate the team and make the roster more well-rounded as the franchise pursues a championship.
Teams around the NBA have believed a Simmons deal would wait until the offseason, but as the trade deadline nears, all eyes are now firmly on the 76ers and Nets to possibly get a deal done. There’s a renewed sense of urgency around these Nets, and it could create a domino effect for several teams that sets the stage for this year’s deadline to have a major impact.
The Harden-Kyrie Irving-Kevin Durant trio hasn’t panned out the way the Nets expected it to with injuries to all three as well as Irving’s unvaccinated status. That has put Brooklyn’s title contender status very much in doubt and that may be why the Nets are now willing to engage on a Harden deal now.
While this does not mean that a deal will surely happen, and the Sixers will be hesitant to trade a guy like Tyrese Maxey or Matisse Thybulle, if they can get Harden to team up with Joel Embiid, that all of a sudden vaults Philadelphia into a legitimate position to contend for a title.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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