James Harden may not be the LeBron James obstacle 76ers hoped for

The Sixer Sense · Jul 22, 2026 17:34 · 3 min read

James Harden may not be the LeBron James obstacle 76ers hoped for — Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) controls the ball against Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden (1) during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. | USA TODAY Sports

If the Philadelphia 76ers hoped LeBron James was trying to avoid James Harden, an NBA insider has bad news for them.

It's July 22, and the LeBron James free agency sweepstakes is still ongoing. Considering the Cleveland Cavaliers have dominated the race as the supposed favorites to land the star forward as of late, the fact that James is still undecided seems like good news for the Philadelphia 76ers.

There are countless factors to consider when it comes to LeBron as we try to figure out why he might join or avoid each team in the mix.

Throughout the offseason, the pairing of James with the core backcourt of Donovan Mitchell and the free-agent James Harden has come into question.

As the NBA insider Jake Fischer noted, a lot of people in the league believe there is a "clunky fit" between Harden and James. Plus, mix in the many playoff hiccups for the former MVP guard, and you might believe LeBron would be more skeptical than anything.

But Fischer debunks that idea based on what he knows from the past. When Harden was a free agent, following a split year with the Sixers and the Los Angeles Clippers, LeBron was ready to take a pay cut to get the All-Star sharpshooter to move over to the Lakers' side of the LAnd.

"I don't necessarily see that, because Harden once upon a time was someone that LeBron communicated to the Lakers, when he was a free agent… it was when he was a free agent with the Clippers or Sixers, but there was a point in time when LeBron communicated to the Lakers that he was willing to take a pay cut if they sign Harden, Klay Thompson or Jonas Valanciunas," Fischer recalled.

The James Harden questions are a myth?

Harden is still very productive at 36. Before he left the Clippers, the ex-Sixer produced averages of 25.4 points and 8.1 assists in 44 games.

When Harden got to Cleveland, he played in 26 games and produced 20.5 points per game, while dishing out 7.7 assists per game.

The "clunky fit" assumption might be a myth, but there has to be at least some sense of hesitancy to link with Harden after he had another playoff burnout, right?

While the Cavs won their Game 7 battle in round two against the Detroit Pistons, James Harden shot 2-10 from the field for nine points in the elimination battle.

Against the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, Harden shot 38.9% from the field and 17.9% from three, averaging 16.0 points per game. He also produced just 3.0 assists per game, while turning the ball over 4.3 times on average in a four-game sweep.

Those concerns from Harden--the playmaker of the offense--are real. How LeBron feels about them is unclear, but Fischer seems to lean towards the Harden factor not being as big a deal as some might believe. That's not the sign the Sixers want.