Hello, Smash fans! Welcome to this week’s article. Today I want to talk about the biggest trade since I started watching basketball back in 2014. The James Harden trade. Not only was this a big trade in terms of impact, but it is also a big trade in terms of the number of things moving around. So today I want to break down what each team got, what each team received, and what this means for that team.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Received: Jarrett Allen, Taurean Prince
Gave: Danté Exum, unprotected 22 first-round pick via the Milwaukee Bucks, 2024 second-round pick
I think this is a good trade for the Cavs. They get a decent rotational piece in Taurean Prince and they get Jarrett Allen, who is a person you could either run alongside Andre Drummond or to come off the bench and be your six-man. When you compare that haul to the fact they only gave up a future second-rounder and a Milwaukee 1st round pick that could be as low as 30, and you get a winner in my eyes.
Indiana Pacers
Received: Caris LeVert, Houston's second-round pick in 2023.
Gave: Victor Oladipo
I think this is a good trade for the Pacers because Victor Oladipo had shown displeasure with the current situation a few times throughout the past year. He's also still recovering from an injury, and we don’t know if he will return to his MIP form. Not only that, but you are getting a player who has shown that he was able to lead a team to a seventh seed. You add that to the fact he has gotten better each and every year, and you get a great trade for the Pacers
Brooklyn Nets
Received: James Harden and a Cleveland Cavalier second-round pick
Gave: Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, 3 first-round picks (2022, 2024, 2026,), 4 first-round pick swaps all with Rockets (2021, 2023, 2025, 2027).
For the Brooklyn Nets, this could either be a great trade or a horrible trade and it hinges on two things. The first being if the Nets win a championship. If the Nets are able to win a championship or even two that would make the trade worth it, no matter what happens after. Additionally, if Kyrie Irving implodes, then this trade looks genius because it would allow the Nets to stay relevant in the East. However, if the nets don’t win a championship, especially if Kyrie Irving doesn’t implode, then this trade would be a disaster. It would be almost as bad as the Nets trade for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.
Houston Rockets
Receive: Victor Oladipo, 3 first-round picks from Brooklyn (2022, 2024, 2026,), Milwaukee Bucks unprotected first-round pick in 2022 from Cleveland, 4 first-round pick swaps with Brooklyn (2021, 2023, 2025, 2027), Danté Exum, and Rodions Kurucs
Gave: James Harden and a 2023 second-round pick
I think this was as good of a deal as the Rockets were going to get for James Harden. It allows them to stay relevant and fun now while also planning for the future. This team is still good enough to maybe sneak into the 8th seed. I think this was all the Rockets could have hoped for and I think they did a great job of getting the most out of an unhappy star.
I think that this may be one of the few trades that doesn’t have a loser but only time will tell. We all could come back to this article in 3 years and laugh at how bad my takes were or we could all come back and realize how well everything actually did turn out for all the teams. That's the beauty of life: there is always so much uncertainty. I, for one, can’t wait to see how this will turn out. Thank you all for reading and until next time, PD Smash signing off.