While the NBA world was shaken on Monday night with news about Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden potentially seeking a trade either before or at the NBA trade deadline, one NBA Insider was squelching at least one rumor.
ESPN NBA Insider Shams Charania reported on Monday night that Harden, an 11-time NBA All-Star, was reportedly in conversations with the Clippers about a trade. One team reportedly mentioned in trade rumors involving Harden is the Cleveland Cavaliers.
NBA Insider Reacts to James Harden-Cavaliers Trade Talk
Late Monday night, NBA Insider Marc Stein of “The Stein Line” refuted an earlier report from Sports Illustrated NBA reporter Chris Mannix that a Cavaliers trade with the Clippers would involve Darius Garland. Mannix insinuated in his story that the talks around Garland are in the “advanced” stages.
But, there is still a possibility that Harden winds up in Cleveland.
“League sources tell The Stein Line — amid multiple reports about a potential Harden-for-Darius Garland swap with Cleveland — that discussions regarding such a trade have not yet reached an advanced stage,” Stein wrote.
“The most serious recent talks between the Clippers and Cavaliers, sources say, focused on players such as LA’s John Collins and Bogdan Bogdanović in potential deal structures for De’Andre Hunter, who was traded to Sacramento instead,” according to Stein.
“The Stein Line has learned that the Clippers, though, do believe that the Cavaliers can still prove to be a legitimate trade partner for Harden,” Stein reported on Monday night.
“Sources confirmed an ESPN report that LA is willing to work with Harden’s representatives to see if a trade is feasible in the final two-plus days before the league’s trade buzzer sounds that can land the 36-year-old somewhere he can secure a longer-term deal than he currently holds,” according to Stein. “Yet it is known by both sides that such a trade might not materialize.”
Harden was out of Monday night’s home game for the Clippers against the Philadelphia 76ers, one of Harden’s old teams. The 76ers won the game, played at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif., 128-113.
Besides the Clippers and 76ers, Harden has played for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, and Brooklyn Nets in his NBA career. Harden is averaging 25.4 points per game, 4.8 rebounds per game, 8.1 assists per game, and is shooting 41.9% from the floor this season.
Will “The Beard,” as Harden is sometimes called due to his facial hair, be playing basketball for a new team in the coming days? Only time will tell.