The NBA's annual trade deadline didn't lack drama on Thursday, as just hours before general managers were forced to end phone calls, the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers agreed to a blockbuster deal involving James Harden and Ben Simmons. Two disgruntled guards who wanted a change of scenery.
According to ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Nets have packaged both Harden and veteran Paul Millsap, in exchange for Simmons, Andre Drummond, Seth Curry, and two first-round draft picks. As part of the deal, Harden is also exercising his $47.3 million player option for the 2022-23 season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. A massive shakeup in the East.
"This is how the NBA works, in a hilarious, TMZ-type way. Where everybody gossips and superstars quit, they determine where they want to go and they move on," JR said during the JR SportBrief show on Thursday. "And there'll be nothing better -- and I mean, not a damn thing better -- in the NBA and in the postseason than the Nets and 76ers. It's too good of a story. Too good to be true, it's probably not going to happen. It's like asking for world peace...
"Is Simmons going to shoot a J? Is he going to pass the rock? God bless him, he's going to a team with Durant and Irving, where he's not going to be asked to shoot the ball. His job is to play defense... Time will tell whether Brooklyn eats him up alive... If you're the Sixers, you had to make this trade as well... There wasn't going to be a return of Simmons. And the best the Sixers could do was bring in another future Hall of Famer in Harden..."
Simmons' relationship with Philadelphia was broken for several months, as he first requested a trade last June, following the team's playoff series loss to the Atlanta Hawks. In Game 7 of the East semifinals, the three-time All-Star scored a pitiful seven points on just four shot attempts, and in 12 total playoff games, he produced the worst free throw rate in NBA postseason history. In defiance of the Sixers, Simmons has yet to play a single game this season.
As for Harden, who was one-third of the Nets' superstar trio that also included Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, his situation worsened in recent days. Although he didn't make a formal request for a trade to the Sixers -- due to fear of fans' backlash -- it became increasingly clear that he wanted to join the franchise. Harden's time with Brooklyn was disappointing. The star trio played together in only nine regular season games last season, and Harden's current scoring average of 22.5 points is his lowest mark since 2012.
JR's complete thoughts on the mammoth trade between the Nets and Sixers can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the JR SportBrief show on Twitter @JRSportBrief and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.