Philadelphia 76ers: You don’t veto a James Harden trade over Seth Curry

Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports /
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Seth Curry is the man.

Initially highway robbed acquired from the Dallas Mavericks for Josh Richardson and a second-round pick, the other Curry brother excelled in an expansive role bigger than any he’d held at his previous stops and proved once and for all that he’s a starting-caliber two-guard at the NBA-level.

Sure, folks knew that Curry was a lights-out shooter, as he ranks fourth in historically 3 point shooting percentage behind only Steve Kerr, Hubert Davis, and current New York Nets wing Joe Harris, but Doc Rivers unlocked a few new facets of his son-in-law’s game, from his ability to slash, auxiliary play make, and cash out contested 3s for an open mid-range 2 off the dribble since his acquisition in November of 2020.

Is Curry a vital part of the Philadelphia 76ers‘ success in 2021-22? Yes, he’s unquestionably one of the team’s top-4 players and should remain a massive piece of their future for as long as he’s on the roster. But for all of the good Curry brings to the table, he’s no James Harden, and if his inclusion in a trade is enough to get the Brooklyn Nets to bite on a midseason swap, it would be foolish for Daryl Morey and company to hang up the phone.

The Philadelphia 76ers have to realistically value their players.

At 31-years-old, Seth Curry is what he is at the NBA level.

For all of his strengths on the offensive end of the court as a shooter, he’s a poor overall defender, a limited positional defender, and the sort of player who can get explicitly targeted by an opposing offense, as the Atlanta Hawks proved all too well in last season’s Eastern Conference Semifinals. With the right coach and the right personnel around him, a team could hide Curry on defense, but unfortunately for the player in question, that hasn’t been the case with the Philadelphia 76ers, as anyone with a DVR can attest to.

Is James Harden a better defender than Curry? No, not really, he does put in more effort as a rebounder and cleans the glass for an average of 4.7 more boards per game, but that doesn’t really change his meh efforts on the defensive end of the court, especially when he’s disengaged. But on offense, oh goodness, Harden can just do oh so much more.

Even now, at 32 and a half years old, Harden is an elite offensive weapon who scores 22.5 points, 10.2 assists, and eight rebounds while playing an average of 37 minutes per game in this, a “down” year. He’s a deceptively good facilitator, a great on-ball scorer, and still capable of being a dynamic off-ball performer, even if that aspect of his game hasn’t been as on display down Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving for much of the season.

Blah, blah, blah, Harden and Embiid are a weird fit. Blah, blah, blah, they might take some time to mesh in a pick-and-roll. Blah, blah, blah, their styles might clash. If you feel that sort of way, that is 100 percent your preference, but I’m firmly in the camp that if you can put two top-15 players on the court at the same time – one in on the perimeter, one in the post – you sort of have to do it, even if there are some growing pains along the way.

Will Curry ever be a top-15 player? No. Will Ben Simmons ever be a top-15 player? No, I doubt he will either, but even in a slightly diminished state, Harden is very much still in that category. If Daryl Morey thinks Harden still has it and is willing to pay hundreds of millions of dollars of the Harris Blitzer Sports Entertainment’s money to bring him to town, I, for one, trust him.

dark. Next. Can Danny Green’s streak survive the trade deadline?

Last year, Daryl Morey was willing to trade away Ben Simmons, Matisse Thybulle, three first-round picks, and even more pick swaps to the Houston Rockets for James Harden because he is a really, really good basketball player. While Harden’s contract status and lingering hamstring issues have diminished his value ever so slightly, if the Philadelphia 76ers can land him for Simmons, Seth Curry, and a noticeably lighter package of picks, the prospects of holding that deal up over a really good shooter is just crazy. Mind you, I’d rather include Danny Green in that deal instead too, but Curry wouldn’t even start if Harden and Tyrese Maxey land on the team, so I don’t quite see why some would suggest naming Doc Rivers’ son-in-law untouchable when there are plenty of other shooters available in a secondary deal.