Philadelphia 76ers ownership reportedly forced Daryl Morey's hand in James Harden trade

The Philadelphia 76ers finally granted James Harden’s wish, trading the seven-time All-NBA guard to the Los Angeles Clippers, just as he desired.

But what took so long? And why now? The 76ers had seemingly been deadset on getting an All-Star-like trade return for the three-time scoring champion, yet that’s not what happened.

So why did the 76ers suddenly agree to trade Harden to the Clippers instead of trying to find a better offer elsewhere?

According to Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports, it was actually the 76ers’ ownership group who pressured president of basketball operations Daryl Morey into striking a deal now.

“From everything that I’ve been told, this was not a package trade that Daryl Morey wanted. This was a trade that was made essentially by the Philadelphia 76ers ownership. They had told Daryl Morey to get a deal done now!”
Vincent Goodwill on Philadelphia 76ers’ decision to trade James Harden

In the end, the Clippers got what they wanted by holding onto Terance Mann and other valuable pieces where now Harden can join a stacked roster in Los Angeles. For Philadelphia, they get to quickly move on from Harden, where they can search for a new All-Star to pair with reigning MVP Joel Embiid.

While there’s no indication of who that next All-Star may be, you can bet Morey is already on the phone trying to swing another deal to improve his team’s championship odds.