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Sixers guard James Harden<\/a> has a $35.64M player option for 2023-24, which means he could be an unrestricted free agent this summer if he doesn\u2019t exercise it. How far Philadelphia advances in the playoffs could end up determining whether or not he stays with the team or returns to the Rockets, ESPN\u2019s Adrian Wojnarowski said on his podcast<\/a> (hat tip to RealGM<\/a>).<\/p>\n \u201cJames Harden\u2019s future is very unclear in Philadelphia,\u201d Wojnarowski said. \u201cHouston is very much in play for him. And I think a lot may depend on [whether the Sixers] make a run and win and it\u2019s easy to pay him long-term big money, or he just wants to be back in Houston. Win or lose he goes, or it\u2019s dependent on the team\u2019s success.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Wojnarowski first reported<\/a> in late December that Harden and his camp were seriously mulling a free-agency return to Houston, where he won an MVP in 2017-18 and earned eight of his 10 All-Star appearances. Another report<\/a> from March 1 indicated that the Rockets planned to aggressively pursue the 33-year-old, who led the league in assists per game this season (10.7).<\/p>\n Harden\u2019s departure is far from a foregone conclusion. He has spoken multiple times about his desire to win a championship, and the Sixers certainly give him a better opportunity for that than the rebuilding Rockets.<\/p>\n Still, if the Sixers lose a possible second-round matchup with the Celtics, there\u2019s a widespread belief that significant changes could be coming to Philadelphia in the offseason, according to Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n