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3 76ers Who Won’t Be in Philly By the End of the Season

By Devon Platana

Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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The last three months have been tough for 76ers fans. For starters, those who wanted a deep playoff run were let down once again when Joel Embiid & Co. were bounced from the second round for the fifth time in the last six seasons.

The team’s financial situation also made it impossible to sign players outside of cheap deals Understandably, a good chunk of the fanbase wonders just how much Philadelphia can improve on last year’s results by only adding names like Patrick Beverley, Mo Bamba and Filip Petrusev.

On top of that, star guard James Harden reportedly requested a trade in July.

With the Sixers’ future uncertain, it’s natural to wonder just how much of the current roster will still be around once the 2023-24 NBA campaign concludes.

Here’s a look at three 76ers who won’t be in Philly by the end of the season.

76ers Trade Candidates in 2023-24

1. James Harden

Harden being a prime trade candidate shouldn’t be surprising given the aforementioned trade rumors.

The 33-year-old veteran will hit free agency at the end of the campaign after opting into his player option. While some fans have faith that a resolution can be worked out to keep Harden in Philly, all signs point to a broken relationship between the player and the front office.

The 76ers can’t afford to lose Harden for free in the offseason, especially with winning during Embiid’s prime being a top priority. The best solution is to move on from the disgruntled shooter sooner than later to get some help for the present as well as the future.

There’s no denying that Harden can still produce to some degree. He just averaged 21.0 PTS/6.1 REB/10.7 AST with 60.7% true shooting over 58 games last year.

However, finding a team willing to accept his $35.64 cap hit (per Spotrac) is another issue of its own.

Nevertheless, general manager Daryl Morey has experience in this area after the Ben Simmons saga. Only time will tell if he moves on from Harden before the season starts or waits closer to the trade deadline.