Former Clippers Player Gets Honest About James Harden's Trade Request

James Harden still wants a trade to the LA Clippers

Both Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden and Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard have made specific trade trade requests this summer. Former NBA guard JJ Redick recently shared an interesting perspective on the entire situation during an episode of his Old Man and the Three podcast.

In the episode, Redick reacted to the NBA's memo that warned against players or agents making statements suggesting a player would not fulfill the requirements of his contract if dealt somewhere other than his preferred detention. While Redick understands why the NBA would issue a memo like this, he spoke on the timing element that exists with star players trying to dictate their future.

"I do think with Harden, and this is not a knock on Harden at all, I do think the trade market right now is not... So much of the NBA is timing. The timing of when you hit free agency, which teams have cap space, so free agency is very similar in my opinion to the trade market. You don't know if you're a player going into free agency, if you will have a robust free agency market."

Redick's point was that much like free agency, the trade market is often dependent on timing. This can become complicated when a player like Harden requests a trade only to the LA Clippers, or a player like Lillard requests a trade only to the Miami Heat, because those teams may not have the assets typically sent out for a star player.

This is where Redick sees things growing even more complicated, because the NBA finds themselves in a very tough spot when players under contract attempt to force their way to a preferred destination.

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