No. 1. Brooklyn Nets trade for James Harden (Jan. 16, 2021)
The Brooklyn Nets not only made the best trade of the season when they acquired James Harden, but they may have made the best trade in NBA history. In a monumental blockbuster trade, the Nets were able to acquire James Harden from the Houston Rockets at a big price.
The Nets traded both Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince to the Cleveland Cavaliers and they traded Rodions Kurucs, first-round picks swaps in 2021, 2023, 2025 and 2027 and unprotected first-round picks in 2022, 2024 and 2026 to the Houston Rockets in exchange for the former league MVP. Brooklyn also traded Caris LeVert to the Rockets, who was later traded to the Pacers for Victor Oladipo.
Sinc acquiring James Harden, the Nets have been the best offensive team in the league and they have been putting up some pretty historic numbers. Harden is already second in Nets history in triple-doubles and currently leads the league in assists per game, putting him in the conversation for league MVP once again.
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Nobody really knew what to expect with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden, three ball-dominant players all on the court together, but they have all sacrificed a little bit to make this work. They have not all played on the court together much due to injuries, but fully healthy, the Nets seem like the clear favorites to win the championship this year.
There is just no way to stop Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden when they are fully healthy and better yet, the Nets went out and added Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge in buyout agreements. This trade for Harden may not deliver the Nets their first championship in franchise history, but if these guys stay together and remain healthy, there may not be a way to beat them in a seven game series.
Brooklyn may have created the next best NBA dynasty and while it cost them a bunch of draft picks and young talents, winning championship trumps everything else.
