The Nets and the 76ers agreed to a trade that had the Brooklyn Nets receiving Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round picks (2022 first-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick), according to Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Philadelphia 76ers receive James Harden (nicknamed “The Beard”) and Paul Millsap from the Nets. The Nets waived DeAndre’ Bembry to “create room for the trade (reported by Adrian Wojnarowski).”
The 76ers should be happy about getting Simmons out of your organization and getting an all-star caliber replacement in Harden.
James Harden and Clint Capela had a great connection in Houston, which is a positive thing to notice if you’re a 76er fan.
During the 2017-2018 season, Harden had some great dishes for Capela, some were shown on this NBA GOAT TV video.
Embiid is an upgrade when compared to Capela and Harden makes the 76ers a way better team. Harden’s amazing ability to pass, isolate and his range help spread out the floor for the 76ers.
The Nets got a decent hall for Harden and received a great defender and rebounder in Simmons.
Brooklyn received two first-round draft picks (which help in the future), gained a great rebounder in Drummond and a good role player in Curry.
Having an all-star talent like Simmons help the Nets win games if Kevin Durant or Irving can’t play due to rest or injury.
The 76ers were waiting to trade Ben Simmons after, “Simmons requested a trade from the Philadelphia 76ers” as reported by SBNation.
Simmons ended up sitting out in the 2021-2022 NBA season and the playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks a year prior was his last game as a 76er.
Harden also wanted out of Brooklyn when Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted, “Although James Harden wanted a trade to the 76ers, he has resisted making that formal request out of fear of public backlash.”
In the 2020-2021 NBA season, James Harden requested a trade and said in a post-game interview, “I’ve done everything that I can. This situation is crazy … it’s something that can’t be fixed (via House of Highlights).”
As a result, Harden received major backlash for the trade request from fans and media alike.
In Feb. of 2021, “The Beard” talked to Rachel Nichols about his exit from Houston, “I felt like it could’ve been a lot smoother. A lot easier.”
Stephen A. Smith, an NBA analyst, talked about the Harden trade, “I don’t think there’s any doubt that Brooklin benefits from this trade (via ESPN).”
Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale points out in a trade deadline article that the Nets grade was a B for the Harden trade and the Sixers grade was a B+.
During NBA on TNT, the video posted by House of Highlights, Charles Barkley said that the Nets won the trade, “if Ben Simmons plays, and they might not work out this year, they’re going to have a really good team going forward.”
During that same House of Highlights clip, Shaquille O’Neal said the 76ers won the trade and that, “they got a guy (Harden) that is a dynamic scorer.”
Time will tell who won the trade but on paper, both teams got an MVP to All-star level player that can help win a championship.
