James Harden and Chris Paul Reunite as Klay Thompson Lands with Joel Embiid in Hypothetical Warriors Trade

James Harden still wants a trade out of Philly. He is adamant about that. He’s missed practice, called Daryl Morey a liar, attempted to pull a Jimmy Butler where he tried to beat the starters with a group of third stringers (and failed rumors reported), and overall been public enemy #1 in the 76ers organization since his China Shoe Tour. Klay Thompson hasn’t received an offer to extend his contract with the Warriors yet. The Splash Brother has had a poor record with injuries since his ACL tear in 2019, with his knees taking a majority of the damage. This hasn’t affected his game, however, as he still remains a lethal shooter from beyond the arc. There are even reports emerging of Klay being pushed out to a new position in order to accommodate Chris Paul in the Warriors side.

Keeping this in mind, what would happen in the hypothetical scenario that the Warriors traded Klay to Philly for Harden? All such views are purely speculative and have been made in an attempt to imagine how a hypothetical trade would affect these teams and players. There are no official reports about this trade, and this scenario exists purely for argumentative purposes.

Winners and Losers of this Hypothetical Trade

To put it bluntly, there is no clear winner in this trade. While Klay and Harden are both elite three-point shooters, the similarities in their games end there. Harden is a ball-heavy facilitator, with his best years as a single star in a team dominated by teammates who weren’t All-Stars. Klay, on the other hand, is a shooter. He’s a great two-guard, but he lacks Harden’s vision or on-ball dominance. Most of his best performances come from one-dribble-shoot or catch-and-shoot positions, something that would require an elite passer like Steph Curry or Draymond Green on the floor with him.

But if we look deeper into this trade, the Warriors could end up losers of this switch. For starters, fans would be devastated by the splitting up of the beloved Splash Brothers. Harden cannot work seamlessly with another ball-dominant Point Guard, which is why Houston’s experiments with Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook both failed. The Warriors have acquired Chris Paul to be a facilitator, and with Steph Curry the face of the Franchise, Harden would most likely get fewer minutes in a position of his choice. An unhappy Harden would spell doom for the franchise, with there being three existing examples of what happens when the Beard isn’t satisfied.

There is also the question of the Playoffs. Harden hasn’t quite had the best showing in the postseason since leaving Houston, and the Warriors are almost perennial Title Contenders. With CP3’s inability to win a ring and El Chapo’s consistent playoff howlers, the Bay Area side may end up getting eliminated in the first round.

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It isn’t all doom and gloom, however. Both Paul and Curry are seasoned veterans, and most likely wouldn’t shoot down the idea of accommodating another star player in the team (Steph has already shown he’s accepting when he let Durant into his team). Harden running the point would mean a lob threat that the Warriors may have never seen before, with the likes of Kuminga and Looney seeing a significant improvement in their role to their team.

In the City of Brotherly Love, we’d see a new duo. With Klay and Embiid, the floor stretch is almost as good as what Dame and Giannis would provide. But the lack of Klay’s passing threat would leave Embiid’s need to play inside unfulfilled. Sure, he could get scraps from his new teammate’s missed threes and convert the second-chance points, but how many threes would Klay need to miss for that? And with the prospect of back-to-back MVPs in his mind, Embiid cannot afford to be low in points.

The 76ers would still be in the market for a starting point guard unless they can get Tyrese Maxey to cover, but he averaged 3.5 assists last year. As a starting PG for a championship-contending team, he’d need to make major changes to his game. Kelly Oubre or Danny Green can fit in sure, but their strengths are similar to those of Klay, and they are more off-ball players. Patrick Beverly or Furkan Korkmaz could fit in, but neither of them will be able to provide Embiid with the assists he’d need to defend his MVP crown.

With Klay, however, the 76ers get a tried and tested playoff performer. With all of Joel Embiid’s playoff horror shows, Klay might just be able to get them over the 2nd round hump, and in contention for a conference final. The experience he brings would also provide some calmness and positivity in the locker room after all of Harden’s drama.

Should the teams even consider this trade?

NO. This is not a good trade for all parties involved. James Harden would make the Warriors worse, and Klay Thompson wouldn’t improve the 76ers. Their personal goals won’t be met either. Harden wants another scoring title, which he won’t be able to get with GSW, and Klay cannot win his 5th ring in Philly. There is no version of this hypothetical trade that allows any party to be happy. Aside from the obvious problems, it opens up possibilities for additional issues. Draymond Green and his ego, Klay Thompson and his love for Dub Nation, and Joel Embiid’s reputation as a top 5 player in the League at stake, there is entirely no reason for such a trade to be agreed upon by either team.

But, of course, the point of these scenarios is to generate discussion and get fans interested in general talk.

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Do you want this trade to go? Or do you have another destination for Harden? What about Klay? Will the Warriors extend their Guard? Let us know down below.