We’re about a month into the NBA season, and James “The System” Harden has torn down yet another franchise. He forced his way out of Philadelphia in a trade to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for picks and role players. Since the deal, the 76ers have flourished and seen Tyrese Maxey grow into a superstar, while the Clippers some nights are uncoordinated and practically unwatchable. How many teams has Harden destroyed? Let’s talk about it!
1. Oklahoma City Thunder: 3 seasons (2009-2012)
⁃ These were the growing years for “The Beard”. Notching his only finals appearance of his career in 2012, he was a very good compliment to KD and Russ. However, he was traded shortly after to a team who needed a face. This team felt that with his scoring ability and his growing ego, he would be able to lead the team.
2. Houston Rockets: 8+ seasons (2012-2021)
⁃ The Rockets were that team, and they were extremely dominant during Harden’s prime, getting to multiple WCFs. They were one game from a Finals appearance, but CP3 not suiting up (in normal CP3 fashion) helped them blow a lead to the Warriors Dynasty. Harden won the MVP award in 2018 and had a season where he averaged as much as 36 PPG. His best games were ethereal, but he never got back to the finals. He drove Dwight Howard, Clint Capela, Chris Paul, and others out of town, just to force his way to the Brooklyn Nets via trade after almost a decade in HTown. Harden was an icon to the city, but it became clear as the years went on that his stats were more important to him than winning the big games.
3. Brooklyn Nets: >1 Season (2021-2022)
- James was not willing to rebuild in Houston; therefore, he sat out until they found a willing trade partner. Welcome to the circus, Brooklyn. The Nets traded 3 first round picks and assets such as future all-star Jarrett Allen, elite 6th-man Caris LeVert, and more in a three-team trade with Houston and Cleveland to land Harden. Harden only played 80 games with Brooklyn, as injuries and another short hold-out situation forced the Nets to fully punt. In his short time there, while his fascilitating skills increased (10.5 APG), everything else about his game (and his positive influence on teammates) decreased. This trade is the 2nd biggest blunder for the Nets in recent memory, of course behind the Pierce/Garnett trade last decade. Harden started the rebuild for Brooklyn, as none of their big three (Harden-76ers, Kyrie-Mavs, Durant-Suns) are still in town.
4. Philadelphia 76ers: <1 Season (2022-2023)
- Harden actually played less regular season games with the Sixers (79) than the Nets (80), but was in Philly for a little over a year. He had some totally dominant games (which forced Embiid's stat lines to decrease). Other games were total duds where it looked like he forgot his place on the court. His selfish play forced regression from budding stars like Tyrese Maxey, and even pushed Tobias Harris to become a non-factor. After another early postseason exit, Harden decided Philly wasn't for him (shocking I know). He sat out to start this season until another team with a history of forcing broken stars to play together came knocking: the Los Angeles Clippers.
5. Los Angeles Clippers?
- The Clips were off to a historically bad start with Harden in town, losing their first six games with him in the lineup. The issue here is pretty clear to see: who's the alpha? Kawhi lead Toronto to a championship by himself. Should it be him? What about Paul George? He is known for hitting huge shots in the playoffs. They still have the triple-double king also, who had to voluinteer to come off the bench just to make Harden happy. Is this where Harden finally gets over the hump? HIGHLY unlikely. There should be less chemistry issues playing alongside Westbrook as this is their third stint together. But if he wants to stick to his "system", this could go south quick and potentially force Harden out of the league. Time will tell.
Below is the list of players/picks involved in trades for James Harden:
- Jeremy Lamb
- Kevin Martin
- Dante Exum
- Victor Oladipo
- Jarrett Allen
- Taurean Prince
- Aleksandar Vezenkov
- Rodions Kurucs
- Caris LeVert
- Ben Simmons
- Seth Curry
- Andre Drummond
- Kenyon Martin Jr.
- Marcus Morris
- Nic Batum
- Robert Covington
- P.J Tucker
- Filip Petrusev
- 10 first round picks
- 3 second round picks
WOW. That group of players could form its own NBA roster and be competitive on most nights. Pair that with all the first round picks (these have developed into guys like current Rockets guard Jalen Green), and now you are looking at a team vying for a playoff spot. Pretty crazy what it has commanded to acquire James Harden over time, who has never won a championship or done more than win an MVP.
We can update this timeline and trade asset list as time passes, but that would require more than a one year, 80 game stint with the Clippers. Stay tuned for more!
留言