With the breaking news of the Harden-Simmons trade simmering down, and the recent news of Simmons getting his season debut in Brooklyn in the near future, we reflect on the wins-losses/ pros-cons for each team and their newest acquisitions.
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Trade Overview
Brooklyn receives:
- Ben Simmons
- Seth Curry
- Andre Drummond
- Two-First Round Picks
Philadelphia receives:
- James Harden
- Paul Milsap
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Brooklyn Nets
It comes as no surprise that the Nets had a roster that was comprised of offensive firepower, and with the new pickups they got from this trade may fill in some of the gaps that the Nets needed some improvement in. Seth Curry is a solid addition into the Nets’ rotation, joining the likes of Kyrie Irving, Patty Mills, Cam Thomas, and recently signed Goran Dragic filling out the guard positions. In regard to what the Nets seemed to be missing, is where Andre Drummond and Ben Simmons come into play. The defensive prowess and rebounding ability of these two players will become crucial as the we progress towards the post-season, as the Nets are currently 14th in rebounds per game. However, the most interesting part of this trade for the Nets was clearly Ben Simmons. Although it is unknown at this time just how the HC Steve Nash and the Nets organization plan on utilizing Simmons and his abilities, they do have some options in regard to doing so. Simmons may find himself returning to his role of playing as a 6’10 PG, or perhaps another approach they could take is filling him in a Giannis Antetokounmpo-esque role, where he isn’t necessarily the primary ballhandler anymore, but more so focuses his energy on playing the inside, defense, rebounding, and making the right pass when necessary. This would truly alleviate some of the pressure and mitigate some of the struggles that Simmons had during his tenure with the Sixers when it came to him shooting the ball.
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Philadelphia 76ers
The Sixers are currently in an interesting place where there’s a lot of up-side with their acquisition of James Harden, especially standing in 3rd in the East, but like anything there is the slight chance of their efforts ultimately causing an overall net loss. The organization have seemingly been doing just fine without Simmons in the rotation, giving Tyrese Maxey the nod and having him as the starting PG for the team. With James Harden and Paul Milsap now in the mix, it will surely take some time for the chemistry to build between these two and the rest of the roster. One can only hope that this transition is as seamless as can be, knowing that if things were to go wrong, they could definitely slip in the standings in a very tight Eastern Conference. However, there isn’t too much short-term issues that may come for the Sixers organization, but over time. There certainly has been a stigma surrounding Harden since his time with the Rockets, of him essentially “giving up” if ever he is in a situation he is displeased with. The media will tell you that Harden “forced his way” out of Houston, and basketball fans saw a difference in Harden’s demeanor as time progressed during his stint in Brooklyn. As much as we all want to believe that Harden is finally happy with his situation in Philly, there’s always the lurking thought in the back of all of our minds that history may choose to repeat itself if the Sixers come across too much trouble on their journey to a championship.
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Overview
Truth be told, one can’t say just yet who won and who lost in this blockbuster trade, especially considering that neither player has even played a single minute on their new teams. It remains to be seen if these are the perfect situations for both players respectively, knowing that there are far too many variables that go into judging the quality of a player. However, in time as the season pushes on, we can only hope to see the players involved in this trade flourish and continue on their paths to contending for an NBA Championship.
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