On Tuesday night, the James Harden drama boiled over in the postgame press conference. This resulted in the former MVP being traded to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday. In a four- team trade, involving the Cavaliers and Pacers, many players and draft picks switched hands.
Here is a breakdown of the transactions today:
Despite all of the moves made, it would appear that every team is going to come out of this trade in a better situation than they were in before.
Brooklyn Nets
The Nets have compiled three amazing iso players who are all equally capable of carrying on offense for their team. The lack of depth the Nets have now that Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert and Taurean Prince are gone is a bit concerning. The good news for Brooklyn is that they were able to hang onto sharpshooter Joe Harris, who will help spread the floor in a major way. The Nets will only be considered ‘true’ winners of the trade if they can win a championship. For now, consider them the new favorites to win the Eastern Conference if Kyrie Irving rejoins the team.
Houston Rockets
The best case scenario for the Houston Rockets is that this move was addition by subtraction. The team can finally move on from the final symbol of a failed experiment in basketball. The Rockets will still be competitive in games, but this move is all about the eight total draft picks the Rockets could potentially see in return.
Indiana Pacers
The Pacers were low-key the smartest actor in this trade. Indiana was not going to be able to compete in the Eastern Conference this season. Instead, they traded a player owed $21 million who was set to become an Unrestricted Free Agent at the end of the year. In return, they got a solid player in LeVert and a second-round draft pick.
Cleveland Cavaliers
I love Jarett Allen and clearly the Cavaliers do too. With Andre Drummond in the last year of his contract, the Cavaliers swooped in and got their center for the future. Allen’s age and talent lines up better with young stars Collin Sexton and Darius Garland.
What do you think about the blockbuster move today? Let us know in the comments below.
