The Whiteboard: The best James Harden trade for Nets, 76ers, Bucks and Heat

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James Harden trade rumors have been swirling for weeks now, but in case you’re somehow new here, let’s briefly recap:

Harden and Russell Westbrook expressed doubts about the direction of the Houston Rockets after their disappointing second-round dismantling at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers. Westbrook then made it known he wanted out. Harden followed suit, telling the Rockets he preferred a trade to the Brooklyn Nets. The Rockets dumped Westbrook to the Washington Wizards but understandably held firm on the Beard, preferring to keep a top-five NBA superstar who’s been the centerpiece of their franchise for nearly a decade now.

With the two sides at an impasse, Harden took player empowerment to new and alarming levels, essentially ditching training camp in Houston to party with rapper Lil Baby on his birthday and be a general Covidiot. He’s finally back in Houston, but he has to register six consecutive negative coronavirus tests before he can take part in team activities.

That’s frustrating for a Rockets team that has its first preseason game today, and especially so for a first-year head coach like Stephen Silas who’s had to field questions about his absence despite not hearing from his superstar that entire time. Every step of the way, the Rockets have been pushed further and further toward just dealing him before an uncomfortable situation turns downright ugly. They want to compete with Christian Wood, John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins; Harden may not give them a chance to do so.

However, disgruntled stars with one-team wish lists don’t often get what they want, especially when they’re still under contract for two more seasons. And so, Harden gradually expanded his list of preferred trade destinations to include the Philadelphia 76ers, and then again to include the Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat on Thursday, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

We’ve covered potential James Harden trades before, and even as recently as this week, we examined a couple of wild trade scenarios to follow up. But now that we’ve got a few concrete destinations laid out, we’re going to double back and lay out the most realistic deal for each of the four teams Harden wants to join.

Brooklyn Nets: Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, Taurean Prince, Jarrett Allen, 2021 first-round pick and 2023 first-round pick for Harden and Ben McLemore

The Nets really don’t have the most attractive package to offer; if they did, the Rockets might have already pulled the trigger. But LeVert could blossom into a star with a change of scenery that won’t require him to defer to Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Prince is a serviceable wing, Dinwiddie is a starting-caliber guard coming off a career year who’s still only 27 years old, and Allen is a moldable young big with room to grow.

Throw two first-rounders on top of that pile and it’s not a terrible offer, especially if you’re buying into LeVert’s potential as a two-way stud. Meanwhile, the Nets create the most combustible Big 3 in NBA history. What could go wrong?

Philadelphia 76ers: Ben Simmons, Matisse Thybulle, Mike Scott and future first-round pick

Charania reports Daryl Morey and the Sixers keen to see how Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons play together under Doc Rivers, with legitimate spacing around them this time. That impulse is understandable. But if they get off to a rough start again, don’t look like contenders and Simmons’ lack of a jumper remains a problem? Then things could get interesting.

This kind of trade would need time to develop, because it’s not happening until the 76ers are willing to include Simmons. That would most likely come in the form of a trade-deadline deal, with Morey finally conceding that these two franchise pillars don’t fit together. For the Rockets, they’re not getting their hands on a better player in any Harden trade than Simmons, and if Matisse Thybulle’s swarming defense, Mike Scott’s shooting and a first-rounder are thrown in, that’s about the best-case scenario for resolving this ugly situation.

Milwaukee Bucks: Khris Middleton, Donte DiVincenzo and D.J. Wilson

The Bucks have arguably the worst offer on the table, and what’s worse, it doesn’t definitively make them more likely to win the title in 2021.

Thanks to the Jrue Holiday trade, the Bucks are the Little Drummer Boy of any trade talks (they have no picks to bring, pa rum pum pum pum). That’ll be a problem for a Rockets organization that will be looking for a king’s ransom to rebuild with in any Harden trade. Milwaukee’s only possible avenue is to start with an established All-Star like Khris Middleton, and then toss in their only two young prospects that hold any value.

The problem here is it deprives Milwaukee of shooting (Middleton), wing defense (Middleton) and depth (DiVincenzo, Wilson). Harden is a major offensive upgrade, but the Bucks’ biggest playoff issue — aside from Mike Budenholzer’s nonsensical minutes restrictions on his starters — was Giannis Antetokounmpo’s inability to create his own shot late in games. Harden is notorious for struggling or disappearing in those moments. Adding the Beard to Giannis and Holiday would give the Bucks a fearsome Big 3, but would it actually make them better in a playoff format?

It’s not a decisive win for the Rockets either. They should be hoping for a much better haul, because as good/underrated as Middleton is, he’s not a franchise star, and he’s already 29 years old. DiVincenzo is a nice young piece, but without picks or more attractive youngsters attached, this would be a pretty meager return for a perennial MVP candidate.

Miami Heat: Goran Dragic, Kelly Olynyk, Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and two future first-round picks

The Heat can’t offer a first-round pick until 2025, but the point still stands: If they’re willing to offer up Tyler Herro, there might be something here. A straight-up trade of Harden for Jimmy Butler is another potential avenue, but after that Finals run, it’d be outright heartless — even for Pat Riley, the NBA’s Tywin Lannister.

It’d still be cold-blooded to dump Goran Dragic back on a Rockets team where he was underappreciated in the past, especially when he couldn’t even play in the Finals due to injury. Even so, this is the kind of logic-over-emotion approach it takes to land a star like Harden on an established Finals team. The Heat could include either Meyers Leonard or Kelly Olynyk for salary purposes, though Houston would probably prefer Olynyk because A) he’s better and B) he’s an expiring contract. Herro is the blue-chip prospect, while a certified sniper like Duncan Robinson is an underrated sweetener.

Heat fans may balk at losing Herro after what he showed in the playoffs, but newsflash: He is NOT as good as many of y’all seem to think. He’s a great young player. If you can trade him for James-Freaking-Harden, you do so without hesitation, especially if you don’t have to include Butler or Bam Adebayo.

The Rockets would be wise to push for Bam, but even with two years on the aging Dragic’s contract, they’d get an expiring deal in Olynyk, along with two younger players who are already very good in Herro and Robinson. Even if the picks don’t come until 2025 and 2027, that’ll still help refill Houston’s empty cupboard of draft assets.

The caveat with this deal, aside from the lengthy wait for those first-rounders to arrive, is it couldn’t be executed until mid-February because Dragic was recently re-signed and cannot be traded again until Feb. 20, 2021.

The clash of Harden and Heat Culture is tantalizing to think about, and he’d catapult Miami back into Finals contention next season, but this return isn’t ideal for Houston, and the Heat may prefer to just run it back as is without sacrificing significant pieces of their present and future.

#OtherContent

We’re rolling out our fourth annual 25-under-25 list this week, ranking the 25 best NBA players under the age of 25. You can check out the full list here, along with a look at some of the biggest disappointments in building this year’s list. And here are the five players revealed today:

• 5. Ben Simmons
• 4. Bam Adebayo
• 3. Devin Booker
• 2. Jayson Tatum
• 1. Luka Doncic

Ahead of one of the weirdest NBA preseasons of all time, The Ringer took a look at six big questions to keep an eye on.

ESPN’s Zach Lowe dove into what’s at stake for Paul George and the LA Clippers after Thursday’s big extension (subscription required, but let’s be honest, if any NBA content is worth paying for, it’s Zach Lowe).

Finally, Sports Illustrated’s Michael Shapiro examined the NBA’s seven most intriguing players heading into the new season.