NBA Trades: 12 stars that will likely change teams by next season

NBA Star #1: James Harden

Will he stay or will he go? That is the big question surrounding Harden and the 76ers this summer. Harden has been rumored to be considering leaving in free agency dating back to December of 2022, and the Sixers don’t have many other alternatives if they lose their second-best player in free agency.

There is a scenario, however, where the Sixers might be willing to complete a sign-and-trade to try to keep from losing him for nothing; otherwise, they would risk taking a big step back without Harden (pun intended).

Their biggest threat to steal him away is expected to be the Rockets, who can sign him using cap space. Though, there may be other teams that make a run at him, including potentially the Miami Heat, who struck out on acquiring Bradley Beal.

Of course, the Suns were also believed to be interested in Harden before landing Beal, making it a two-team race at the moment. With so few teams having enough cap space to pursue him, even fewer that Harden would probably consider playing for, it seems that the Sixers have a 50/50 shot at keeping him.