NBA Trade Rumors: James Harden no-shows Houston Rockets' workouts

Speculation about James Harden's future is increasing every day. While NBA trade rumors over the last month may have linked him to the Brooklyn Nets, the furor slowly died down. Well, that was until the Houston Rockets decided to trade Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards for John Wall.

To add to the uncertainty, Harden was reportedly amiss during the Rockets' individual workouts on Thursday, per Marc Stein of the New York Times.

Rockets star James Harden was not yet in Houston for the team's individual workouts Thursday, league sources say ...New Rockets coach Stephen Silas said this afternoon of Harden that he's "confident that he'll be here when we get started" Houston's first practice is Sunday

— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) December 4, 2020

This could translate into several things for the Houston Rockets. Perhaps it's just a normal delay on the part of James Harden. Perhaps he's undecided and mulling over his options. Perhaps he's already negotiating with the front office to force a move. The latter can be ruled out considering new head coach Stephen Silas was confident of Harden joining up with the team before they start full practice.

NBA Trade Rumors: Where does James Harden's future lie?

There's no second-guessing the fact that if James Harden is traded, it would be the biggest move of this offseason. And there have been many signals that such a situation could come to pass. Only a month ago had The Beard turned down a huge extension that would see him rack up $50 million a year. One does not simply turn down that kind of money for no reason at all.

Sources: After turning down an extension offer to become the first $50M a year player in league history, James Harden’s message to Houston is clear: Get me to Brooklyn. Rockets and Nets have been in contact, but there’s been no meaningful dialogue. https://t.co/qwJOQOxz5U

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 17, 2020

At the same time, the Houston Rockets have made their position very clear. They'll only be willing to part ways with their marquee superstar if they get a haul of assets similar to what OKC Thunder got in the Paul George trade.

NBA Trade Rumors: Will John Wall's arrival help Houston Rockets retain James Harden?

John Wall

It's also been reported that trading for John Wall could eventually help the Houston Rockets retain James Harden. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski stated that Harden "had a preference of John Wall over Russell Westbrook."

There are obvious doubts over Wall's fitness considering that he hasn't played an NBA game in over two years now. The duo participated in pick-up basketball in November alongside other NBA players. So maybe Harden knows something about Wall that the general public does not and maybe, the latter could turn out to be a better fit at Houston Rockets than Russell Westbrook.

---