The NBA has opened an investigation into a possible tampering violation committed by the Philadelphia 76ers centered on their signings of James Harden, P.J. Tucker and Danuel House.

Harden declined his $47 million player option to sign a one-plus-one contract with the 76ers at $33 million in Year 1 to give the team flexibility to sign Tucker and House.

Some have wondered if another deal with Harden is in place for the future, which would be a violation of league rules.

Tucker joined the Sixers from the Miami Heat on a three-year, $33.2 million deal.

James Harden has officially signed a two-year, $68 million contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. Harden has a player option for the 23-24 season.

“Today, I'm celebrating alongside Sixers fans everywhere as we announce that James Harden – former MVP, 10-time All-Star and three-time scoring champion – has re-signed with the team,” Managing Partner Josh Harris said. “James stands out as an elite playmaker and feared scorer, and his commitment to the team reflects his dedication to bring a championship to this city. We recognize that winning a title is no easy feat, but I’m proud of the work our organization has done this offseason and look forward to the season ahead.”

“This is where I want to be. This is where I want to win, and I think we have the pieces to accomplish that goal,” Harden said. “From my first day with the 76ers organization, the team and the fans have helped me feel at home here in Philadelphia. I’m excited to build off of last season and I can’t wait to get out on the court with the guys and start this journey.”  

James Harden declined his $47.4 million player option for the 22-23 season with the Philadelphia 76ers and signed a one-plus-one contract in which he will earn nearly $15 million less in Year 1.

The decision, which Harden detailed in an interview with Yahoo! Sports, has raised questions around the league, according to Marc Stein.

"I told Daryl [Morey] to improve the roster, sign who we needed to sign and give me whatever is left over," Harden explained to Chris Haynes.

The 76ers managed to sign both P.J. Tucker and Danuel House while also trading for De'Anthony Melton given the flexibility offered by Harden.

"There is a suspicion in some corners of the league that Harden had to have consented to this arrangement because he also secured a wink-wink guarantee about the future — meaning a promise from Morey that would allow Harden to recoup what he left on the table this offseason by declining the player option for next season in his new Sixers deal and then signing a whopper of a five-year deal in the summer of 2023 at almost 34," writes Stein. "Such speculation is inevitable given how close Morey and Harden clearly are, but I've also heard plenty around the league question whether the Sixers, beyond the fact that these types of arrangements are against league rules, could actually bring themselves to give Harden any assurances."

The Sixers acquired Harden from the Brooklyn Nets in February, a few months after he rejected a three-year, $161 million extension. 

The Philadelphia 76ers have announced plans for a new arena to be built in downtown Philadelphia. The team shared some designs, as well as the proposed location for the $1.3 billion, privately funded arena.

The new arena is proposed to open in time for the 2031-32 NBA season. It's unknown if the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL will join the Sixers in playing in the new building, or if the Flyers will stay at the Wells Fargo Center.

One of the motivating factors for the 76ers to build a new arena is location. The Wells Fargo Center is located in South Philadelphia with limited access to public transportation. There's also limited parking in the area. The location of the new arena has several public transportation options, as well as an abundance of parking nearby.

James Harden signed a two-year, $68.6 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

The deal includes a player option for the 2023-24 season.

Harden declined a $47.4 million player option for next season, giving the Sixers the cap flexibility to sign PJ Tucker and Danuel House and trade for De'Anthony Melton this offseason.

Harden, who turns 33 years old next month, averaged 22.0 points and 10.3 assists last season. 

James Harden said he is "locked in" with the Philadelphia 76ers, despite having a few contract details to still work out. Harden also said he was on board with helping the team add talent this offseason, after he opted out of his contract.

“I had conversations with Daryl, and it was explained how we could get better and what the market value was for certain players. I told Daryl to improve the roster, sign who we needed to sign and give me whatever is left over,” Harden said. “This is how bad I want to win. I want to compete for a championship. That’s all that matters to me at this stage. I’m willing to take less to put us in position to accomplish that.”

Harden opted out of $47.4 million for the 2022-23 season. He's reportedly agreed to take a contract starting around $36 million, which is how much room the Sixers have under the hard cap. Harden opting out and taking less money allowed Philadelphia to sign both P.J. Tucker and Danuel House Jr. to contracts this summer.

The NBA is expected to investigate potential tampering on the part of the Philadelphia 76ers in their signing of P.J. Tucker. It was reported several days in advance of the opening of free agency that Tucker was going to sign with the Sixers.

Tucker's agreement with Philadelphia on a three-year, $33 million deal was one of the first reported when free agency opened at 6:00 PM ET on June 30. The first tweet of an agreement between Tucker and the 76ers came from Shams Charania of The Athletic at 6:01 PM ET.

In recent years, the NBA has punished the Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks for reaching early agreements with free agents. In each case, each team was forced to forfeit a second-round pick. The NBA is also expected to investigate whether the New York Knicks tampered with Jalen Brunson when he was a Dallas Mavericks free agent this summer.

The Philadelphia 76ers and Ben Simmons are heading to arbitration to settle the approximately $20 million withheld from him as he sought a trade, which is a story every team is closely monitoring. 

Simmons initially failed to report to the Sixers, but then said he was mentally not ready to play as the two sides continued a contentious standoff. 

The ruling will establish precedent for possible future holdouts by players seeking trades.

"I don't know exactly how long it takes for these things to unfold, but that's not over," said Zach Lowe. "That's ongoing. I know that for sure. There have have been filings recently in it. And I think it's $20 million or something is at stake in forfeited salary that the Sixers withheld.

"To say the league and its 29 other teams are watching and listening and eagerly anticipating the outcome of that case is also an understatement. Whatever the outcome of that case is, it is going to be an earthquake when it happens if it's one sided. 

"If it's like 'you know what 50/50, just whatever'. It will be 'I don't know how to take it.'

"If it's 90/10 in either direction, it's going to be an earthquake."

James Harden plans to sign a two-year deal with the Philadelphia 76ers with a player option for Year 2. 

Harden opted out of his $47 million deal and will earn $32 million in Year 1 of his new deal as he reduced his salary by $15 million to help facilitate additional signings for the Sixers this offseason.

The Sixers acquired Harden in February as part of the Ben Simmons trade. 

The Houston Rockets were close to a draft night trade of Eric Gordon with the Philadelphia 76ers the presumed landing spot before talks fell apart.

The Rockets also received offers on Gordon from the Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns, who offered packages including first round picks. The Los Angeles Lakers have also expressed interest in Gordon.

The Sixers re-engaged the Rockets at the start of free agency, but were unable to get a deal done as Houston isn't desperate to trade Gordon. The Rockets could reevaluate offers on Gordon later in the offseason and even at the deadline.

Gordon signed a four-year, $76 million extension in 2019. Gordon has $19.6 million on his contract for 22-23 and $20.9 million for 2023-24. However, the final season is fully non-guaranteed unless Gordon's team wins the NBA Finals in 2023 or he makes the All-Star team in 2023.