Rumors: James Harden turned down $120,000,000 Sixers offer before requesting Daryl Morey for trade

The biggest news this week is about James Harden going to the LA Clippers after the All-Star asked to be traded to the team in the offseason. Now, it's been reported that the ten-time All-Star has been offered a three-year deal worth over $100 million, which he eventually turned down.

Last summer, Harden signed a two-year, $68.6 million to stay with the Philadelphia 76ers. His current contract with the Sixers has reportedly given him a player option in the final year, which he could exercise to his advantage. However, recent news about the former MVP and his team revealed they were close to securing a big deal.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the 2011-12 Sixth Man of the Year had the chance to sign a three-year, $120 million contract this offseason. However, he let that opportunity slip away and demanded a trade to the Clippers.

"He's got a lot to prove to people in the league," Wojnarowski said. "In terms of his future and what it's going to look like, it is unlikely he's going to get the money back in his next deal that he has given up by not signing that max extension in Brooklyn, by not signing in Houston when it was offered to him when he asked for the trade then, and by not going into free agency last summer.

"He potentially could have had a two- or three-year max deal with the Sixers, probably around $40 million a year. He didn't want to wait for July 1. He opted into the deal with the very clear suggestion to Daryl Morey and the Sixers that he wanted a trade. And that he wanted that trade to come to the Clippers. It finally did several months later in the dead of the night."

Woj added that Harden was given a similar opportunity when he was with the Houston Rockets but did capitalize on it. Now, he'll finish the 2023-24 NBA season with the Clippers, who will play against the Sixers twice this season.

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James Harden "gets what he wants" after four successful trade requests

Harden has become a notorious player when it comes to requesting a trade. ESPN's Brian Windhorst believes he should teach others "how to get traded."

"I’m serious, when James Harden’s career is over, he should open up a consultancy where he advises players on how to get traded because he’s untouchable," Windhorst said. "And I’m not saying this tongue in cheek, he gets exactly what he wants, when he wants, under his terms. Victory today for James Harden."

After the deal was done, not many were impressed with how it went down. Some think the Clippers got worse and aren't favorites to win the title anymore.

Regardless of what his detractors may believe, a happy James Harden can be more than a handful on any given day.