The 76ers Acquired James Harden for Ben Simmons and Three Assets
On February 10, 2022, Philadelphia acquired former MVP James Harden and veteran forward Paul Millsap from Brooklyn. The Nets received Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and a future first-round selection that eventually became No. 28 in 2023, associated with Brice Sensabaugh. The broader completed agreement also involved another future first-round pick whose timing and protections require separate reconciliation against the inherited abbreviated canonical asset row. The deal ended Simmons’s prolonged absence from Philadelphia after a breakdown in his relationship with the franchise, while Brooklyn moved Harden after the star partnership with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving had failed to produce a championship. Philadelphia wanted an elite passer and scorer alongside Joel Embiid, and Brooklyn chose defense, shooting and more draft options instead of extending Harden’s stay.
Harden Helped Philadelphia Reach Another Level in the Playoffs
Harden moved into the 76ers starting backcourt and supplied high-volume assists and secondary scoring next to Embiid. In 2022-23 he led the league with 10.7 assists per game, demonstrating his value as a creator even though his points per game had declined from his earlier Houston peak. Philadelphia reached the Eastern Conference semifinals in each of his two playoff campaigns, with Harden delivering several major postseason performances but also struggling in key elimination games. He ultimately requested another trade and joined the Clippers in a separate 2023 transaction, so Philadelphia did not get a long-term title-winning combination from this move. The inherited A grade reflects substantial regular-season playmaking and immediate lineup improvement, while noting the high purchase price and unsuccessful championship objective. Millsap provided a much smaller bench role.
Brooklyn Received Valuable Shooting, but Simmons Had Limited Availability
Curry became a useful Nets perimeter scorer, and Drummond supplied frontcourt rebounding during the remainder of 2021-22. Simmons was the most talented incoming player on paper, yet back problems and other limitations drastically reduced his early Nets availability. The franchise did not recover the healthy Philadelphia version of Simmons who had regularly earned All-Defensive honors. The 2023 first-round pick eventually became an asset in a subsequent chain, not automatically a Brooklyn player who started an NBA season. The inherited D grade reflects the difficulty of replacing Harden’s creation with a return led by an unavailable star, notwithstanding Curry and Drummond’s legitimate playing contributions. The Nets had an understandable motivation to end an unstable star arrangement, but the trade still failed to secure a direct new All-NBA creator for their offense.
Final Verdict
76ers Win. Philadelphia earns A for James Harden, who led the NBA at 10.7 assists per game in 2022-23, plus Paul Millsap. Brooklyn gets D for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and a first-round asset linked to 2023 No. 28 Brice Sensabaugh. Simmons’s limited Nets availability constrained the return.