The Philadelphia 76ers finally granted James Harden’s wish, trading the seven-time All-NBA guard to the Los Angeles Clippers, just as he desired.
But what took so long? And why now? The 76ers had seemingly been deadset on getting an All-Star-like trade return for the three-time scoring champion, yet that’s not what happened.
So why did the 76ers suddenly agree to trade Harden to the Clippers instead of trying to find a better offer elsewhere?
According to Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports, it was actually the 76ers’ ownership group who pressured president of basketball operations Daryl Morey into striking a deal now
In the end, the Clippers got what they wanted by holding onto Terance Mann and other valuable pieces where now Harden can join a stacked roster in Los Angeles. For Philadelphia, they get to quickly move on from Harden, where they can search for a new All-Star to pair with reigning MVP Joel Embiid.
While there’s no indication of who that next All-Star may be, you can bet Morey is already on the phone trying to swing another deal to improve his team’s championship odds.
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