James Harden declines $36.3M option, plans to return to Clippers on 2-year deal

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James Harden declines $36.3M option, plans to return to Clippers on 2-year deal

Tomer Azarly · ClutchPoints

Sun, Jun 29, 2025 ·

4 min read

James Harden opts out of $36.3M option for 2025-26 season with Clippers

James Harden and his camp took the decision right down to the 2PM PST deadline on Sunday, but officially informed the Clippers that he will be opting out of the final year of his deal to enter free agency. Harden and the Clippers plan to move forward on a two-year deal worth $81.5 million, a source told ClutchPoints.

Harden signed a two-year, $70 million last offseason with a player option for the 2025-26 season. The expectation at the time was that, if all goes well, Harden would opt out and re-sign with the Clippers this summer.

By opting out of his deal, Harden would enter unrestricted free agency, but an agreement on a new deal with the Clippers always appeared to be the likeliest of scenarios.

Harden, who will be 36 years of age in August, desired a long-term deal this offseason, likely the final one of his NBA career.

"The best-case scenario is that James [Harden] is here a long time and the Clippers win championships," President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank said during the LA Clippers NBA Draft media availability. "That's the best-case scenario.

"We were able to formally engage with James once the NBA Finals ended. He's our number one priority. We're super hopeful that James is here and he's here for a long time. But yet at the same time, we always respect that he has a player option. So he can opt in and obviously we're super excited with that. Or he can opt out and hopefully we can do a deal that makes sense for both sides. But James was phenomenal and we hope to continue to see his play."

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Harden had a successful 2024-25 campaign with the LA Clippers, showcasing to the world he's still a very viable second option alongside Kawhi Leonard . The 16th season for Harden was his 11th time being named an NBA All-Star and his eighth time being named to an All-NBA team. In 79 appearances for the Clippers, Harden averaged 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 8.7 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 41 percent from the field and 35.2 percent from three.

The Clippers have been quietly active over the last few weeks as they attempt to bolster their roster following a disappointing end to their 2024-25 season. Despite calls going out and potential frameworks of deals not reaching the finish line, the Clippers are expected to remain active in the trade market as teams look to navigate around the new CBA and the dreaded second apron.

"You're always in constant contact with all the teams and you have a good sense of things that you can be involved with and other things that you're not," Frank said when asked of the Clippers involvement in trade talks. "Just like we talked about last year, the CBA is having a huge impact. We made some decisions — and some decisions were made last year — to create flexibility for us going forward. You see what other teams have to do. And there's no secrets. You're constantly engaged in looking for opportunities to get the team better and we'll continue to do that.

"Kind of our goal, Trent [Redden], I, the rest of the front office team, is how can we get this current group as good as we can possibly be to compete at the highest level while also still having flexibility going forward because [the new CBA] is not going to stop. In our case, because of Steve [Ballmer], [Tyronn Lue], LA, Intuit Dome, all the great things that we're blessed with that players are going to be in circulation, and we have to be in a position to be able to retain them. Many times cap space gives you that opportunity because we're super fortunate that players want to play here."

Free agent negotiations can begin with players on your team after the NBA Finals, but negotiations with players not on your team begin June 30th at 3PM PST. That's also the date that contract extensions with eligible players are able to be discussed.