Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta refused to trade James Harden for 76ers



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The 76ers have become considered favorites to trade for James Harden.

Chris Haynes from Yahoo Sports:

After that I was told that Tilman Fertitta – the owner of the Houston Rockets – he was just adamant that they weren’t making a deal with Philly, obviously with Daryl Morey being the GM there now.

Morey and Fertitta had their differences while they were together in Houston. Morey resigned as general manager of the Rockets last fall, apparently to spend more time with his family. But – as Fertitta predicted – Morey landed with Philadelphia soon after (for a big paycheck). Morey was later fined for tampering with Harden, which often only happens if someone files a complaint.

This report begs the question: Did Houston general manager Rafael Stone actually prefer Victor Oladipo and the Nets picks Houston got for Harden, or did Stone prefer the 76ers’ Ben Simmons-centric package? Fertitta has already canceled his basketball operations department.

Sometimes owners say they won’t trade with a certain team out of frustration or to increase their influence – or both. (Clever GMs can even pretend that their team owner is somehow predisposed to inducing better deals.) Pelicans owner Gayle Benson has reportedly argued that New Orleans wouldn’t trade Anthony Davis to the Lakers. Although she denied this, a lot of people thought the Pelicans wouldn’t trade Davis for the Lakers. Of course, the Pelicans ultimately traded Davis to the Lakers – for a massive comeback.

Even if he were Truly against the Harden trade in Philadelphia, Fertitta didn’t necessarily stick to this emotional tenure. The 76ers really seemed to be in the mix for Harden at the end.

Obviously, sometimes stubbornness prevails.

So I wouldn’t rule out that Fertitta absolutely refuses to trade Harden with Morey and Philadelphia. But I wouldn’t blindly trust him either. It’s just too likely that this was bragging in the first place or that Fertitta’s stance has changed.

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