James Harden re-signs with the Philadelphia 76ers

Maligned superstar James Harden has re-signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. It will be a two year deal where he will be taking less money than he could’ve in order to help Philadelphia with their cap space. Considering Harden’s history, this agreement is a surprise to NBA fans everywhere and everyone has been assuming he will opt in to his exorbitantly overpriced player option.

James Harden has been on a rocky path in the past couple seasons but apparently, he is finally buying in. After forcing a trade from the Houston Rockets to the Brooklyn Nets by refusing to play, he did the same thing to Brooklyn in order to force another move. While Harden is an extremely talented player, there were a lot of questions about his motivation for basketball and whether he would truly give it his all. Him taking less money than he could’ve shows his desire to win and is objectively a good sign for Philadelphia fans.

Harden averaged 21 points per game in his 21 games with the Sixers last season and that was a big dropoff from his peak just three years ago. Sure, he could be getting older but in 2019, he averaged 36 points per game and it was clear he wasn’t playing with that same motivation last season. He is only 32 years old and should be able to return to his MVP level if he truly wants to.

Regardless, this is a big deal for Philly and the cap space he freed up will give them more options to fit around Harden and MVP runner-up Joel Embiid. Also, the 76ers have an up and coming talent in Tyrese Maxey who could level up in this coming season and make Philadelphia one of the most feared teams in the league. A lot of things need to happen, but re-signing Harden at this price point is definitely an indicator that Philly is on the right track.

Right now with the top betting sites, the Philadelphia 76ers are +1300 to win next season’s NBA Championship. If everything falls into place around Harden and Embiid, that could be good value but there are a lot of things that need to shake out. Philadelphia will be a good regular season team as they have been in recent years but they haven’t proven themselves in the playoffs. At those odds, we wouldn’t recommend placing a wager on a team that lets down their fans consistently in the biggest moments.

Philadelphia definitely isn’t done with this offseason and the book is not yet finished on their big roster decisions. If they continue to make smart moves, Philadelphia will be an enticing team to place a future on. Getting Harden to buy in is huge, but not everything. There are going to be plenty of more moves to come and we cannot wait to see how it all plays out.
More casino & sports news