Sixers

Apparently James Harden Did NOT Exercise Player Option

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Feb 11th, 2022 · 11:42 AM EST

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Thursday, Shams Charania reported that James Harden was going to opt in for the final year of his contract at $47 million. Apparently that is not the case, because Kyle over at Philly Voice is saying this:

Essentially — Harden would have had to opt into next year prior to deal being completed, did not do so. He now would have to wait until end of year to opt in, or (obviously) could simply opt out and sign new long term deal

— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) February 11, 2022

Right, so Harden can still sign for five-years and $269 million. He’s in his 30s and likely will want to get something done sooner rather than later. If he does decide to opt in, he’d guarantee his $47 million next season and then would be able to sign for four more years at $223 million.

This shouldn’t mean much, because the Sixers wouldn’t have done the deal if they didn’t think they’d get a commitment from Harden. They’ll have to pay him a lot of money well into his 30s, but you’re trying to right now attack this open window. The other thing to consider is that they can try to move Tobias Harris in the summer and look for a different third piece to work with Harden and Embiid, so there are a lot of different ways to proceed here.