James Harden is working with the Los Angeles Clippers to get a trade before Thursday’s deadline at 3 pm ET, according to ESPN. The two sides are in talks and working with interested parties, which could land the 11-time All-Star and 2018 NBA MVP to play for his sixth NBA team in the near future.<\/p>\n
Harden had a stellar year all things considered. He averaged 25 points and eight assists per game, maintaining the All-Star-caliber performance he gave the Clippers last season. The only problem is that the Clippers are not as good as a team as they were last year. They have since battled back into the postseason picture after a 6-21 start, but that hole was so deep that the Clippers may not have a real chance of making a deep playoff run in the Western Conference.<\/p>\n
Harden, perhaps the most successful player in the NBA to not have a championship ring, likely wants to go to a place he feels will give him a chance to compete in the twilight of his career. Harden has the right to block any trade, so he can choose his next home. So let’s go through three possible destinations for Harden as the Clippers sort through potential deals.<\/p>\n
![\"team](\"https:\/\/sports.cbsimg.net\/fly\/images\/team-logos\/alt\/344.svg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"team](\"https:\/\/sports.cbsimg.net\/fly\/images\/team-logos\/337.svg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\nThe Cleveland Cavaliers<\/h2>\n
Sports Illustrated reported Monday that the Clippers and Cavaliers had advanced discussions about a James Harden-for-Darius Garland trade. On the surface, the deal makes very little sense for the Cavaliers. Harden is 10 years older than Garland. While not unusual, the obvious comparison would be Dallas’ trade of Luka Don\u010di\u0107 last season for Anthony Davis, who is six years his senior.<\/p>\n
The more you think about this one, the more it seems to make sense. Garland has been injury prone throughout his career. He played in 70 games for the first time last season, then struggled throughout the playoffs with a toe injury. That toe injury cost him games early in the season and limited his effectiveness when he was there. He hasn’t played since Jan. 14. You owe two more years of capital and are eligible for an extension in the summer. If the Cavaliers don’t feel comfortable playing him, a trade is inevitable.<\/p>\n
But more trades will hurt the roster this season. The Hawks had to trade Trae Young in the dumps. The Cavaliers are hoping to make a playoff run this season, but the league as a whole doesn’t care about small guards. So, Cleveland’s best bet for a decent return might involve trading Garland for a different point guard. Ja Morant can’t shoot, so he’s not starting at all for Cleveland. LaMelo Ball may have been rumored at the beginning of the season, but the Hornets are rolling now. There weren’t many options. Enter Harden.<\/p>\n
While Harden obviously isn’t a long-term game, he would represent an improvement over the version of Garland they’ve had this season at least. He is one of the very few players in all of basketball that they could trade Garland for without making this season’s roster worse. Of course, if Cleveland had made a move on Garland sooner, things could have been different. But any dreams of, say, a Trey Murphy trade are long overdue. This is what is on the table in Cleveland. The Cavaliers could trade Garland for draft compensation, but doing so would involve bringing back negative salary. This trade carries long-term risk, but in the short-term, it keeps Cleveland in the hunt.<\/p>\n
Would Harden, given his Los Angeles roots, be as happy in Cleveland? It’s hard to say. It worked wonders for JR Smith, who succeeded as a Cavalier because, in his words, “There is nothing, no going out, no nights. There are video games, basketball and basketball.” Maybe Harden can benefit from the same. If they want to contend for a title, traveling to Mpumalanga often makes that easier, and the Cavaliers have a roster ready for the tournament.<\/p>\n
![\"team](\"https:\/\/sports.cbsimg.net\/fly\/images\/team-logos\/342.svg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\nHouston Rockets<\/h2>\n
This wouldn’t be the first time Harden tried to return to Houston. There were rumors that he might return for the rest of the 2022-23 season, when he played for the Philadelphia 76ers. The Rockets instead chose to use cap flexibility to sign Fred VanVleet as their point guard, putting Harden in a bind. He had nowhere to go in free agency, so he was forced to pick up his option in Philadelphia and force a trade to Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
After all, things have changed. VanVleet was great in Houston, but tore his ACL before the season. The Rockets lost another key player in Steven Adams to an ankle injury recently, giving them $38 million in salary cap space this season. VanVleet has the right to refuse a trade, but Los Angeles could appeal to him with former teammate Kawhi Leonard and a clean slate the Clippers could use to pay him long term if they choose. Harden makes just over $39 million. Houston is struggling to create a court case. That’s Harden’s specialty. The Rockets are loaded with defenders who will protect him in that low position. He will reunite with former teammate Kevin Durant for the second time following their brief partnership in Brooklyn and one in Oklahoma City.<\/p>\n
Houston turned down its last chance at Harden. Would the Rockets feel any different now? He doesn’t quite fit Ime Udoka’s defensive-first style, but they may not be making the right choice with a real title shot on the line and a few off-season options. Would Houston have given up a reasonable writing fee to do this? The Clippers don’t run a charity, after all. If Garland is on the table for them, the Rockets will have to put a real amount of draft money on the table to match that.<\/p>\n
There are obstacles here, but you’d think that if Harden had his choice, he’d probably want to return to Houston. The Rockets have turned their 2021 trophy into a full contender, and now Harden may be back there just in time to fully enjoy the spoils of this rebuild.<\/p>\n
![\"team](\"https:\/\/sports.cbsimg.net\/fly\/images\/team-logos\/348.svg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\nMinnesota Timberwolves<\/h2>\n
Minnesota doesn’t have the one-on-one player exchange the Clippers have that the Cavaliers have, and they don’t have the same appeal and substance that Houston has. But the Timberwolves have one of the NBA’s most aggressive general managers in Tim Connelly. If he wants Harden and Harden wants the Timberwolves, he’ll find a way to make it happen.<\/p>\n
Point guard has been a problem for Minnesota since Mike Conley started going downhill. The Wolves have tested young players like Coby White, but Harden’s play will pair very well with Anthony Edwards as a scorer and all of Minnesota’s defense and athleticism have come together. Minnesota would have to send one or two of its most expensive players to make the deal work financially. The easiest way would be Julius Randle, the late No. 8 Rob Dillingham and one less salary in exchange for Harden. That would leave the Clippers with 16 players easily, forcing them to waive Chris Paul and allow him to try to find a new home for the rest of the season.<\/p>\n
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s ridiculous trade: How Knicks, Warriors, more could lure Bucks with wild multi-team deals<\/p>\n
Sam Quinn <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
![\"Giannis](\"https:\/\/sportshub.cbsistatic.com\/i\/r\/2026\/02\/02\/6d08391b-58fe-4c75-9bf4-d5eb3638de91\/thumbnail\/270x152\/7bc1a6a026ed74156b0e8094ac287a5f\/giannis-getty-40.png\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nThe biggest takeaway here, however, is that the Timberwolves are currently chasing Giannis Antetokounmpo. Minnesota won’t give up a 31-year-old MVP for the success of one 36-year-old MVP. So for now, the Timberwolves are busy. We’ll see if that changes before Thursday’s deadline.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
James Harden is working with the Los Angeles Clippers to get a trade before Thursday’s deadline at 3 pm ET, according to ESPN. The two sides are in talks and working with interested parties, which could land the 11-time All-Star and 2018 NBA MVP to play for his sixth NBA team in the near future. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4183,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4182","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4182"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4182\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4184,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4182\/revisions\/4184"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4183"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4182"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4182"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insightresearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4182"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}