3 reasons James Harden will leave 76ers for Rockets

The Philadelphia 76ers are currently down 1-2 in their series with the Boston Celtics. Aside from the general doom and gloom polluting the fanbase — and, considering the history between these two teams, there’s plenty of it — there are now those looking ahead, with trepidation, toward the offseason.

Few contenders are on shakier ground than the Sixers. Joel Embiid is locked up long term and one has to expect Tyrese Maxey will get his max-level extension. But, beyond that, there are question marks abound.

The biggest of all is James Harden. The 33-year-old is set to enter unrestricted free agency if he so chooses. The primary opponent in the race to acquire Harden is likely to be the Houston Rockets, Harden’s former team, located in his beloved adopted home city.

Will the 76ers re-sign James Harden this offseason?

The Sixers have the ability to offer a four-year, $210 million contract, but nothing more because of the CBA’s over-38 rules. The Rockets, as noted by Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, can offer four years and $201.7 million with their available cap space.

Will the Sixers be able to re-sign Harden? Frankly, the signs are pretty grim right now. Here’s why Harden will end up with the Rockets next season.

1. Money

Houston’s max offer comes in roughly $9 million short of Philadelphia’s over a four-year span. That is not much in the grand scheme of Harden’s career, I’d imagine. Plus there’s the unfortunate fact that Texas does not have state tax. Pennsylvania does. So the money advantage could even out quickly, or perhaps even swing toward the Rockets.

Plus there’s the important question of if the Sixers want to sign Harden to the four-year max to begin with. After his maestro performance in Philadelphia’s Game 1 win over Boston, Harden is averaging 14.0 points on 17.9 percent shooting over the ensuring two games. If he can’t figure out how to consistently produce at an elite level with Embiid on the floor, over a span of multiple postseason games, then perhaps Philly has to cut its losses — or at least angle for a shorter-term deal, which could give the more desperate-for-relevance Rockets a leg up.