The Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Clippers have been discussing the framework of a James Harden trade for some time now, but it's evident that both teams will be taking their sweet time, content with waiting for the other party to grow in desperation. And it seems as though a new wrench has been thrown into the works of a potential deal, especially in the aftermath of the Clippers' reported decision to make Terance Mann, the team's fifth starter when healthy, “untouchable” in Harden negotiations.

The Sixers have insisted on the inclusion of Mann in any deal with the Clippers, which is understandable as the 27-year old wing is a jack-of-all-trades. He is a positive defender, he is a much improved three-point shooter, and he nails the little things that contribute to winning. Moreover, his contract is a major positive as well. But there may be a bigger reason why the Sixers are hell-bent on acquiring the Florida State University product from LA.

According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, the Sixers learned that the Clippers included Terance Mann in the package they put together in their attempt to swing a trade for Jrue Holiday, who has since then been moved by the Portland Trail Blazers to the Boston Celtics. Thus, the Philadelphia front office believe that they're well within their rights to ask for Mann if the Clippers have shown willingness to include him in a deal for an All-Star-caliber point guard.

Nevertheless, Holiday and Harden's playstyles could not be any more different; the former fits the Clippers' more defensively-inclined roster construction, giving the team one of, if not the best point-of-attack defender. Meanwhile, the Beard's ability to create shots may be elite, but he will run into some offensive overlap with both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

At the end of the day, it's a matter of which team caves in to the pressure first. Fischer also noted that the Sixers are remaining patient especially when they know that the Clippers don't exactly have the luxury of time when it comes to maximizing their 213 era. But it looks like for the next few weeks, there will be a stalemate between the two.