THE The Philadelphia 76ers A few years ago, veteran James Harden was seen as their missing piece, but it’s now clear that wasn’t the case.
There was a heated argument between Harden and 76ers team president Daryl Morey, which Morey credits with helping the organization land forward Paul GeorgeGeorge’s signing was an indirect consequence of the conflict, as Philadelphia was still forced to give up significant assets to acquire Harden from the Brooklyn Nets.
Because of this, Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey reassesses the deal a C+ for the 76ers.
“Before Harden’s latest trade to Los Angeles, it would have been easy enough to deride this from a Philadelphia perspective,” Bailey wrote. “He never went past the second round as a Sixer. By the time he was about to leave, he was publicly and aggressively calling team president Daryl Morey a liar.”
The Sixers have moved Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, Ben Simmons, a 2023 first-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick to acquire Harden, as well as big man Paul Millsap.
“Giving up draft capital and a former franchise cornerstone in Ben Simmons for this kind of puzzle seems, on the surface, like a disaster,” Bailey shared.
It’s clear that moving on from Simmons was a blessing, as he’s only played 57 games since leaving Philadelphia. Even if they didn’t take advantage of it right away, the 76ers are ready to contend for an NBA title less than three years later.
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