Kawhi Leonard? Pascal Siakam? What could 76ers do with cap space next summer?

It appears that one of the sources of tension between James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers is their desire to maintain flexibility and spending power for the 2024 offseason. That opportunity arose because, while Joel Embiid is on his lucrative supermax deal, Tyrese Maxey’s second contract will not start until next season, and the 2020 first-rounder has a cap hold of only $13 million until it gets replaced by his eventual agreed-upon salary. If Daryl Morey can keep the rest of the 76ers’ obligations relatively clean, they have a clear path to a 30 percent max contract and a plausible one to a full 35 percent max offer as well.

A championship contender with the reigning regular-season MVP wielding legit cap space so soon is exciting, and it’s worth going through the players and possibilities that having spending power in 2024 and could potentially be brought into the fold in Philadelphia.

One note before we really get going: Harden’s recent comments have brought the new collective bargaining agreement’s language on “withholding services” to a larger audience, but I sincerely doubt it will be relevant in this case both because the CBA’s consequences are so severe and because Harden’s form of agitation at previous times has been disruption while present rather than not showing up at all. It is good to be familiar with the concept, but it would be a big departure for “withholding services” to become relevant.

Cap space to add one star

If the 76ers’ goal in 2024 is to use cap space to bring in a key contributor, the main path is signing a free agent. The 76ers can negotiate directly with any unrestricted free agents when the time is right (and presumably when the time is not right as well…) with the added benefit of not having to sacrifice any assets to bring them aboard. While inevitably some players will follow Jaylen Brown’s lead and sign extensions between now and then, the 2024 free-agent class could have some high-end talent who would be fascinating fits alongside Embiid and Maxey, who is a restricted free agent next summer but is expected to remain in Philly as the 76ers can match rights to retain him.

Technically speaking, James is the highest-profile player who could be a free agent next summer, but it feels unlikely that he would make that kind of jump.

The next most prominent free agent is someone with some … bouncy history with the 76ers. The best-case scenario sales pitch is straightforward. Leonard, who has a player option for 2024-25, can create his own offense even against elite competition, and while he has taken some steps back as a possession-by-possession defender, he can still take on tough assignments in big spots. Leonard and James are also the only potential free agents who have already established themselves as the best player on a championship team, which would be an absolute luxury alongside Embiid. Of course, the challenges are also abundantly clear with Leonard. He has…