Ever since the Sixers traded Ben Simmons for James Harden, the three-time scoring champion, 2018 MVP, 10-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA, top 75 all time, and future Hall of Famer, we’ve been wondering what The Beard’s next contract might look like.
Well the one thing that isn’t on that incredible resume, is a championship. And it appears that’s what Harden, 33, has prioritized in structuring his next deal, which sounds like it will be at least $15M less than the salary he could have landed himself by picking up that $47.4M option for 2023.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Harden is planning to take a $15M paycut, in the first year of a two-year deal with a player option, in Year two:
Everyone around Harden has understood the focus on his workout regimen this offseason and a championship goal for 2022-23.