The trade that everybody and his mother knew was coming finally pushed through before last Friday’s deadline, and it should prove beneficial to all parties. The Sixers very much wanted to show Ben Simmons the door as soon as it became clear he had already checked out; they stayed put for so long only because of their keen desire not to get pennies to the dollar for him. Meanwhile, the Nets had grown tired of James Harden’s passive-aggressive posturing; even as he didn’t want to ask for a trade outright given the potential public backlash, he made sure to send the same message in other ways. And so a swap of the two All-Stars was made — the same swap that would have likely been in store after the 2021-22 season.
Certainly, there was cause not to delay the inevitable. Mere presence had both players casting a pall on franchises deemed among those with legitimate chances to contend for the hardware — and so there was addition by subtraction to the arrangement as well. Meanwhile, the development bolsters the respective title bids of the division rivals. On paper, the additions fit the playing styles and predilections of the Sixers’ and Nets’ resident stars. At this point, even casual observers are salivating at the prospect of pick-and-roll play after pick-and-roll play between Most Valuable Player award frontrunner Joel Embiid and Harden. Ditto the projected two-man action sets between all-time-great Kevin Durant and Simmons.
There is, of course, the possibility that things will not turn out as hoped. The National Basketball Association landscape is littered with examples of strange turns of events in which potential far from translates to practice. At the same time, there was nothing else the Sixers and Nets could do heading into the trade deadline; maintaining the status quo was a no-no, and they were at the point where change — any change — was better. And for all the excess baggage carried by Harden and Simmons, their output (when they are, to be sure, at their best) reflects their otherworldly talent.
Considering that Harden needs to recover from a hamstring strain and Simmons will have to get back to shape after a lengthy sidelining, the All-Star break figures to serve them in good stead. The Sixers and Nets need them, warts and all. And as they ramp up their return to the court, they leave behind a trail of What Ifs that show the challenges of aiming for the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Everything is in flux, and nothing is etched in stone.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
