James Harden to 76ers, Ben Simmons to Nets in blockbuster trade deadline deal

 

The Philadelphia 76ers have traded Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond and two first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for James Harden and Paul Millsap, two people with knowledge of the trade told USA TODAY Sports.

The person requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly until the trade is official.

This ends a spectacle that has hampered both teams: Simmons has not played a game for Philadelphia this season as a result of the fallout from his performance in last year’s Eastern Conference semifinals against Atlanta and the subsequent blame placed on him.

TRADE TRACKER:NBA trade deadline tracker: Bucks acquire Serge Ibaka, Pistons land Marvin Bagley in four-team deal

James Harden (13) of the Brooklyn Nets and Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers traded places in the biggest deal of the season.

It also ends a disappointing attempt by Brooklyn to create a super team with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. The three played just 16 games together over the course of 1½ seasons and have nothing to show for it.

Philadelphia president of basketball operations Daryl Morey maintained he wouldn’t trade Simmons unless it yielded a return that can help the Sixers win a championship. That kind of deal wasn’t on the table until the situation with Harden and Brooklyn soured.

With Harden arriving, Morey, who was in charge of the Houston Rockets when Harden developed into an MVP, has what could be an outstanding 1-2 combo: Harden and Joel Embiid.

Embiid is having a career-year and is an MVP candidate, averaging 29.4 points, 10.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.4 blocks and one steal while shooting 49.8% from the field, 35.8% on 3-pointers and 81.2% on foul shots.

The Sixers lose depth and shooting in the deal, but they also desperately needed an All-Star caliber player to compensate for Simmons’ unavailability.

Brooklyn gets Simmons, who is 25 and a three-time All-Star. He heads to the Nets with questions to answer. While Simmons is a great defense, playmaker and passer, especially in the open court, he has no reliable outside shot and is coming off a series against Atlanta where he shied from even taking shots near the rim.

Brooklyn has dropped in the standings since Durant’s injury. The Nets are 29-25 and in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. They have lost nine of their past 10 games and are 5½ games out of first place.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reports: Ukraine bans all male citizens ages 18 to 60 from leaving the country

The  Ukraine S tate Border Guard Service has announced that men ages 18 to 60 were prohibited from leaving the country, according to reports . Thursday's action came after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy 's declaration of  martial law across the country after Russia invaded Ukraine and attacked major cities, including the capital, Kyiv.  "In particular, it is forbidden for men aged 18-60, Ukraine citizens, to leave the borders of Ukraine," a statement from the service said, according to CNN . "This regulation will remain in effect for the period of the legal regime of martial law. We ask the citizens to take this information into consideration." Under martial law, military officials  are in charge of applying law and not civilian leaders or police. It is usually invoked in times of war when  the rule of law has broken down. It's really an alien concept': Ukraine's president declared martial law after Russia's attack. But what is i...
Read more

Michael Jordan’s “Broken Foot Game” Air Jordan 1s Sell For $422,130

Image
A pair of Michael Jordan’s game-worn Air Jordans from an unfortunate time in his career have a new owner and the price tag to acquire them was steep. Player issued Air Jordan 1s believed to have been worn by Jordan during a game against the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 29, 1985 recently sold for $422,130 through auction house Lelands . The date of that game is significant because it’s when Jordan suffered a fractured bone in his left foot, causing him to miss six months of action and derailing his sophomore season. Lelands obtained the sneakers from a consignor whose father was gifted the game-worn sneakers personally from Jordan at the time. The pair comes in Jordan’s famously mismatched size 13 (left) and 13 ½ (right), and features “850102-TYPS” stamping along the interior linings. Because of the shoe’s production midway through the 1984-85 season, there’s speculation that Jordan may have also worn these at some point in his rookie campaign, but that has...
Read more