Good, bad, ugly: 3 deals the 76ers might actually be able to get for James Harden
The Bad James Harden trade: The Bulls and Sixers swap DeMar DeRozan and Harden
The Sixers want to keep their books clean for the summer of 2024 but also want to be competitive this season. The Chicago Bulls refuse to rebuild and love a baffling decision. Sounds like a bad trade waiting to happen.
DeRozan/Harden
This is about as simple as a trade can get. The Sixers send James Harden to the Chicago Bulls, and the Bulls send DeMar DeRozan to Philadelphia. One-for-one swaps are extremely rare in the NBA, but necessity is the mother of all invention. The Sixers get an All-Star who’s presumably interested in playing for Daryl Morey, and the Bulls get a star who makes more sense next to Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic.
While this deal doesn’t dramatically change the Sixers’ title chances in the short or long term, it does improve their roster this season, lessens the chances of a Joel Embiid trade request, and saves them money. DeRozan isn’t as good as Harden, but replacing him with Harden will open up more opportunities for Tyrese Maxey to run the offense. If Maxey can take a jump and Embiid stays healthy, the Sixers will have a shot to be a top-four seed in the East. As a bonus, they’ll maintain financial flexibility heading into the offseason.
If the Bulls want to win this season, which appears to be the case, then flipping DeRozan for Harden makes all the sense in the world. Harden is a better player and a better fit for their roster. The Bulls had the second-lowest 3-point attempt rate in the league last season, and the primary reason was DeRozan’s minuscule 3-point volume.
Harden would change that from day one and give LaVine and Vucevic the space and opportunities to thrive. From a pure basketball perspective, flipping Harden for DeRozan is a win for the Bulls. However, the Bulls should probably be looking to rebuild, but that has been the case for a while.
The Sixers and Bulls exchanging Harden and DeRozan doesn’t materially move the franchises in the right direction. The Sixers still won’t be a contender, and the Bulls still won’t realize they need to blow it up and start from scratch. It’s a fair trade but a bad one nonetheless.