James Harden looks to be solidifying efforts to get him moved from the Houston Rockets. The nearly decade-long relationship between Harden and the franchise has become untenable, and Harden is not shying away from talking about it. Harden had openly requested a trade away from Houston in the off-season. However, with two years on his contract, Houston hasn’t hurried to fulfill this request.

Harden had a massive game to start the season, but the team has started faltering now. They are 3-6 and were just beaten by the Lakers, who had 70 points by half-time. Harden wasn’t holding any punches back in his post-game interviews. He called his team ‘not good enough’ and said that he has tried everything.

Houston added John Wall in place of Russell Westbrook in the off-season. Other additions like Christian Wood are playing high-level basketball, but it isn’t enough. DeMarcus Cousins is still acclimatizing himself after returning from a series of bad injuries.

Harden walked out of the press conference after this quote, basically trying to force the Rockets’ hands with a very public trade request.

James Harden: Where can he go?

If the James Harden era in Houston is over, everyone should give this era their props. They were the only team outside the Cleveland Cavaliers that could challenge the Golden State Warriors’ dynasty. However, a very active front office and Harden becoming dissatisfied with his teammates quite often meant the team would never find the consistency needed for a title run.

Any team that trades for Harden will need to completely switch their style of play. Considering how well Philadelphia have been playing when they have players on the court, they wouldn’t be obvious candidates. However, teams like Brooklyn and Miami may pull the trigger and change their rosters up after their slow-starts to the season.

Whichever team Harden goes to could become title contenders, provided he is motivated. But the question is, will Harden’s track record over the past few years make teams wary of trading for him? Possibly, but we will have to wait and see.