Now that James Harden is finally traded to the Brooklyn Nets, the questions that arose in the wake of the blockbuster deal are begging for answers. Perhaps the most intriguing of them is: Why the Rockets closed the deal with Brooklyn and decided to brush aside the Sixers?
The answer should be simple - the Nets have the assets that proved more attractive when compared to what the Sixers have to offer. It appeared too that the Brooklyn front office went the extra mile to make the deal work, which explains the involvement of the Pacers and Cavaliers.
Most importantly, the Nets dropped a monster offer that their rivals were unwilling to match, and that's according to Yahoo Sports.
It seemed that Houston passed up on the package prepared by Philadelphia not because of the inclusions but more of the exclusions. It was understood that Ben Simmons was put on the table and the Rockets started listening intently but it turned out to be a dealbreaker when a particular player was declared untouchable by the Sixers.
Per the same report, the Rockets welcomed the Simmons offer but the Sixers to get Harden, rookie Tyrese Maxey must be part of the discussion as well. However, Sixers GM Daryl Morey thumbed down the demand as Maxey is now regarded "a significant building block," for Philadelphia.
So Morey was thinking about his team's long-term prospects and the Rockets are mulling about the same concern. It's easy to see that the two sides will not reconcile on the matter, and on the other hand, the Nets turned out to be flexible enough even to the point of coordinating with other teams to the trade can be completed.
In other words, Philadelphia did make the moves to show the franchise would want to have Harden. But the more determined suitor turned out to be the Nets. The Rockets were left with no recourse but to make the deal with Brooklyn, fully aware that shipping out The Beard the soonest will bring back the team to focus on the game.
Now that is the other side of the story. Another angle of the exchange places Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta at the center of the deal. According to Fadeaway World, Fertitta made clear from the start that he is not dealing with a former employee now on the Sixers side, and that is Morey.
Reportedly, the Rockets' top man was just adamant about not doing business with Morey, suggesting that the two parted ways minus the amicable settlement. Emotions are still high to Houston would rather deal with other suitors, which made the Nets the lucky winner of the James Harden sweepstakes.
In the end, it was crystal clear that the more active pursuer will win the prize and Brooklyn proved to be that party.
