As James Harden’s potential trade continues to grow, the former MVP would have expanded the list of preferred landing points by two.
Harden has added Boston Celtics and Portland Trail Blazers to their list of favorite destinations, according to Sam Amick of Athletic. They join a group that includes the 76ers, Nets and Bucks as teams that are rumored to be on Harden’s roster. This group also included the Heat group, but Miami would have finished its search for a Harden trade. Milwaukee is reportedly no longer interested.
Harden has two years left on his contract, plus a $ 47.3 million player option for the 2022-23 season.
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The opening of the Houston season was postponed due to an outbreak of COVID-19 within the team. Three players tested positive, and another four were quarantined due to contact tracking. Harden was unavailable due to violations of safety and health protocols and subsequently received a $ 50,000 fine.
According to reports, the league is reviewing Harden’s video at a club, which would be a violation of the NBA’s COVID-19 policy that prohibits players from attending covered social gatherings of 15 or more people or entering bars, lounges. , clubs or similar establishments.
With his uncertain state creeping into the season, Harden has been described as having an “uncharacteristic” level of frustration, according to Shams Charania of Athletic. Harden has reportedly entered into verbal altercations with teammates, although it is unclear what the disputes were about.
With so much uncertainty about the Rockets ’ability to find a business partner who is willing to give up the right value for a superstar player, Amick reports that there is a“ growing belief ”within the organization that Harden could end up staying. in Houston the rest of the season or beyond. The Rockets aren’t forced to limit their discussions to Harden’s roster teams either, creating an extra layer of intrigue to what is already the NBA’s juiciest off-court plot.