It’s far too early to judge how the Rockets did on the James Harden trade. Early returns are not great with key piece Victor Oladipo not working out and being shipped to Miami, but those four first-round draft picks and four draft swaps from the Brooklyn Nets could still prove incredibly lucrative.
However, one thing is obvious at this point: Rockets general manager Rafael Stone forever will be thankful he didn’t deal Harden to Philadelphia for any package that included Ben Simmons.
When the Rockets dealt Harden in January, there were two serious contenders – the Nets and 76ers.