According to The Athletic reporter Shams Charania, James Ha and others will give up their player options worth $47.4 million next season and enter the free market.
Harden This move is not to leave Philadelphia , but to give the team more salary flexibility. Harden's goal is to win the championship with the 76ers next season. He returned to the court to train earlier than in previous years. He started training two weeks after the end of the season on May 12 in order to better restore his shape. Harden will focus all his energy on competing for the championship in the 2022-23 season.
Harden wants to give the 76ers salary flexibility and allow the team to retain the full mid-level salary of 10.5 million and the two-year exception of 4.1 million. Harden must reduce his salary. The starting salary of the new contract may be between US$37 million and US$38 million, depending on the range of salary reduction. Reaching $10 million. This can ensure that the 76ers can still control the total salary below the wealthy line (157 million) while using the middle-class and biennial exceptions.
For example, Harden can get 166 million in four years. In the fourth year, only 10 million is guaranteed to compensate for his salary cut. The actual guaranteed salary is 127 million, which is much less than the 150 million he could have received in three years.
