Harden agrees to two-year, $68.6 mn deal to stay with Sixers

NBA star James Harden has agreed to a two-year, $68.6 million deal to remain with the Philadelphia 76ers, league sources told the Philadelphia Inquirer on Wednesday.

The newspaper was just one of the US media outlets reporting the deal, which comes less than a month after the 2018 NBA Most Valuable Player declined his $47.4 million player option for the coming season so the 76ers could bolster their roster.

Harden will reportedly make $33 million in the 2022-23 season in the deal that also includes a $35.6 million player option for 2023-24.

As Harden waited for his deal to emerge, the Sixers signed veteran forward P.J. Tucker and forward Danuel House.

Harden, a 10-time All-Star, landed at Philadelphia from Brooklyn at the trade deadline last season in a blockbuster deal that sent Ben Simmons to the Nets.

He averaged 21 points, 10.5 assists and 7.1 rebounds in 21 regular-season games with Philadelphia.

After the 76ers fell to the Miami Heat in the second round of the playoffs, Harden said he would do "whatever it takes to help this team continue to grow and put us up there with the best of them." — Agence France-Presse