The Houston Rockets signed guard James Harden to a four-year contract extension for about $160 million Saturday, and now reportedly are turning to their attention to acquiring the Knicks' Carmelo Anthony.
With Harden under contract on his existing deal for another two seasons -- giving him a total six-year deal with $228 million guaranteed -- ESPN reported the Rockets, who earlier this summer acquired guard Chris Paul, will try to get Anthony in their aggressive pursuit of free agents as the Rockets try to make a run at the Golden State Warriors.
One potential roadblock to Anthony going to Houston is Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni. The two did not get along when D'Antoni coached the Knicks
Harden is coming off of his finest season. Moving to point guard for Mike D'Antoni, Harden averaged 29.1 points, an NBA-leading 11.2 assists and 8.1 rebounds and finished second in the MVP race to former Oklahoma City teammate Russell Westbrook.
Harden's do-it-all season helped the Rockets bounce back from a massively disappointing 2015-16 season that collapsed under the weight of chemistry issues with the All-Star guard and big man Dwight Howard. With Howard gone, the Rockets put Harden at the center of everything they do on offense, and it paid off in a major way.
Houston went 55-27 in the regular season and beat Westbrook and the Thunder in the first round of the Western Conference semifinals.
"Houston is home for me," Harden said. "Mr. Alexander has shown he is fully committed to winning and my teammates and I are going to keep putting in the work to get better and compete for the title."
ESPN first reported the contract details.
Harden seemed to run out of gas a bit in their semifinals loss to the San Antonio Spurs, and GM Daryl Morey has worked quickly to get him some help this summer.
Morey traded for All-Star point guard Chris Paul, a bold move that gives the Rockets as talented a backcourt as any team in the league. Morey also signed rugged forward P.J. Tucker to boost the defense and brought Nene back as well.
And he's not done yet.
This mechanics for this extension are new to the NBA in the latest version of the collective bargaining agreement. Harden was named first team All-NBA, making him eligible for a lucrative, four-year "supermax" extension that gives him long-term security and also sends a message to the rest of the league that the Rockets are committed to stability as they try to challenge the Warriors in the West.
