On Saturday evening, the Los Angeles Clippers hit the floor at home to take on the crosstown rival Los Angeles Lakers. The Clippers ended up winning the game in comfortable fashion over the shorthanded Lakers, ending their ugly losing skid in the process.
Still, that win alone won't do much to calm down the incessant chatter around the Clippers of late, with many speculating that the team could opt to explore the trade market considering they are already well behind the eight ball in the crowded Western Conference playoff picture.
Recently, NBA insider Marc Stein took to his Substack to address the latest buzz on James Harden.
“One veteran executive read my recent item about James Harden's potential availability between now and the Feb. 5 deadline and said his front office, to name at least one, indeed projects the NBA's last American-born MVP (from the 2017-18 season) to wind up in trade play at some point this winter,” reported Stein.
However, Stein did note that “…Harden holds veto rights on any trade even though he does not have a full no-trade clause in his contract.”
Overall, the Clippers currently sit at 7-21, and are well below the play-in, let alone playoff, line in the vaunted Western Conference.
This being the case, it certainly wouldn't come as a shock to see the team explore moving ne or more of their key pieces.
As for Harden, the Beard has seemed to enjoy playing in his hometown of Los Angeles over the last couple of seasons, but as he continues to get older, it's not hard to envision him wanting to spend his twilight years in a more competitive situation.
In any case, the Clippers now have a couple of days off before they next hit the floor on Tuesday night at home against the Houston Rockets.
