The Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers have completed a blockbuster trade shortly ahead of Thursday’s NBA Trade Deadline buzzer.
There have been ongoing reports of Nets star James Harden being unhappy in Brooklyn, which reportedly led to him asking for a trade recently, saying that Philadelphia was his preferred destination.
It seems that Harden has gotten what he wants. The Nets have agreed to a deal with the 76ers that will send Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and two first-round picks to Brooklyn in exchange for Harden and Paul Millsap.
Here are some reactions to the monumental trade:
This is a great haul for the Nets.
Simmons hasn’t played a game this season for the 76ers, due to his well-documented unhappiness with the organization. It should be assumed that the Nets wouldn’t make this trade without feeling confident that Simmons would be ready to play for them (at least relatively soon). According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Simmons “will continue to work with his therapist to get mentally ready to play in Brooklyn.”
There are also reports that the Nets may try and use these picks for more trades before the deadline ends.
Given that Harden was planning on opting out of his player-option to test out free agency anyway, getting back Simmons, Drummond, and Curry for him could certainly be huge for the Nets playoff hopes this season.
The 76ers get a star to pair with center Joel Embiid, which could be just what they need to make a deep playoff run this year.
With the end of Harden’s time in Brooklyn, the big three of Harden, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving may just be one of the greatest “what ifs” in NBA history.
Ultimately this trade has a ton of pieces, and it will be interesting to see this season who came out the true winner of the deal moving forward.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.