NBA Rumors: Sixers Trade Target James Harden 'Locked In' With Rockets

Once the Sixers hired Daryl Morey as the President of Basketball Operations, the James Harden trade scenarios came pouring in. 

Morey, who joined the Houston Rockets in 2006 and became the General Manager the following year, was responsible for snagging James Harden via trade.

The former first-round pick showed tons of improvement through his first three NBA seasons on the Oklahoma City Thunder. Harden's real emergence came when Morey and the Rockets brought him over to Houston, though.

During his first season with the Rockets, Harden averaged a career-high of 25 points-per-game. Since the 2012 NBA season, he's never averaged less than 25 points, and he's never failed to earn an All-Star bid. 

Every year for the past eight seasons, Harden has kept Houston in playoff contention. While they've never won a championship on his watch, the Rockets were always in the conversation as possible championship contenders.

But this year, the situation feels slightly different. Following the 2020 NBA Playoffs, the Rockets parted ways with veteran head coach Mike D'Antoni. Then, Daryl Morey called it quits on the organization and joined the Sixers a month later.

With the sudden turnover in Houston, Harden and the team's other star Russell Westbrook reportedly grew worried about the Rockets' future. On Wednesday morning, both Harden and Westbrook were concerned, but neither requested any trades just yet.

By the time Wednesday night came around, though, the situation had flipped. Russell Westbrook requested a trade, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. With Westbrook recognizing the Rockets as a potential rebuild candidate moving forward, many might believe Harden will do the same.

That's not the case. Not now, at least. Per Charania, James Harden remains committed to Houston. The veteran MVP is reportedly "locked-in" for the 2020-2021 season. Morey and the Sixers still might monitor the situation as Harden could be an excellent upgrade to their roster, but don't count on any deals coming to life.

For starters, the Sixers made it clear they'll want to build around Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons this season. If Houston's going to trade eight-time All-Star James Harden, who just led the NBA in points-per-game over the last three seasons, they're going to want another star in return.

Not to mention, the Rockets aren't shopping Harden right now. Unless the veteran guard requests a trade, Houston's not going to dish him out. Being that he's mentally locked in to play with the Rockets next season, there's a very slim chance Harden goes anywhere this year.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_