The LA Clippers are entering a season that could go in a lot of different directions.
Best-case scenario: a healthy Kawhi Leonard and James Harden play up to standard, and the Clippers hover around the top of the Western Conference standings, providing ownership with confidence that a Leonard-Harden pairing can make a title push in the spring.
Worst-case scenario: Leonard or Harden requests a trade after the team gets off to a sluggish or worse start due to chemistry issues.
Both Leonard and Harden are looking to contend for a title at this point in their respective careers. If that doesn’t look like it can happen with each other in LA, trade requests could follow.
Leonard has been linked to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a move that would place him directly in front of a Finals opportunity.
Might a similar move be on Harden’s mind? Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes recently reminded everyone that Harden is quite skillful at requesting trades, as evidenced by his stints with the Houston Rockets, Brooklyn Nets, and Philadelphia 76ers.
“There haven't been any rumblings to date, but how can you exclude a player who has basically perfected defection?” Hughes said.
“With Paul George gone in free agency and questions looming about Kawhi Leonard's health, the Clips are looking at preseason win total projections that have them finishing around .500. That almost certainly won't be good enough to get them into the Play-In.”
“Harden has forced his way out of far better situations than this.”
“The only potential saving grace is that LA's lack of other options means Harden might wind up getting to play much like he did as an ultra-high-usage alpha with the Rockets. But it's not so hard to imagine him struggling with those responsibilities at age 35 and deciding he'd like to play someplace with more supporting talent.”
“Ultimately, Harden hasn't stayed happy for long on any of his last three teams. Why should we believe anything will be different now?”
Once Harden does become trade-eligible later in the season, watch out for the Los Angeles Lakers as a potential landing spot.
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