Free agent guard James Harden will be remaining with the Clippers, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the former MVP is signing a new two-year, $70MM contract with the club. The second season will be a player option, sources tell Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
Harden was acquired in November after a messy dispute with Sixers president of basketball operation Daryl Morey over what Harden considered to be broken promises in contract negotiations. Harden publicly insulted Morey and disrupted training camp in an effort to force his way out of Philadelphia.
Harden was initially an awkward fit alongside Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Russell Westbrook, but the four All-Stars eventually worked things out and the Clippers claimed the fourth seed in the West with a 51-31 record.
Harden took over as the starting point guard and contributed 16.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 8.5 rebounds per night in 72 games.
The player option means Harden will get another chance to test the free agent market next summer when he may be better positioned to get a long-term deal.
There were rumors this weekend that the Lakers were considering targeting Harden, but as an over-the-cap team, they would have had no realistic path to match the Clippers’ offer.
Harden’s new deal pushes the Clippers’ projected team salary above $152MM for 10 players, according to Yossi Gozlan at CapSheets.com. That puts the team about $19MM below the luxury tax line, but doesn’t account for Paul George, whose maximum salary would push that total into second-apron territory if he returns. If George signs elsewhere, the Clippers could have the full mid-level exception and bi-annual exception available.