Yesterday the Thunder traded James Harden, sixth man of the year and team USA member, to the Houston Rockets. In addition the Rockets also obtained Cole Aldrich (who has performed well in pre-season), Daequan Cook (won't play much) and Lazar Haywood (will play even less). The Thunder received Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb, 2 first round picks (one of which is guaranteed to land in the lottery, the other top 20 protected) and a 2nd round pick (will be in the 30s b/c pick from CHA).
My thoughts?
The Thunder's front office proved again why they are among the best in the league. Harden is a good player, but not deserving of a max contract, as he will get from Houston. Kevin Martin draws fouls at a very high rate, and is a great spot up shooter, which will be perfect next to Russell Westbrook. Jeremy Lamb has lots of potential, and should see rotation minutes at the 2 for OKC. In addition, the first round picks will help OKC stay great and improve depth some more, especially if players like PJIII fall in their lap again.
In short, I love this trade for OKC. Houston still won't make the playoffs, but has an intriguing backcourt in Harden and Lin. This is a big season to see how good Lin really is.
Grades:
OKC: A
HOU: B+
also of note- Houston had to cut more players to make space for the players acquired from OKC. Among them was former Purdue star JaJuan Johnson. Blazers should go after him and cut Pavlovic.
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