Nets GM: ‘It’s not easy’ to get out of Harden

Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks said the trade he sent to james harden to the Philadelphia 76ers for Ben Simmons It was tough to pull off, but it will ultimately allow both Harden and the Nets to get the fresh start they needed.

“Make no mistake about it: We did everything we could to get James Harden and invite him into the group,” Marks said during a trade deadline video conference Friday afternoon. “And these decisions to move on from a player like that, of that caliber, are never easy. I just want to make it clear that this is not something you think, great, let’s make an immediate decision and move on. I give James a lot of credit for having an open dialogue, open discussions with me and with the group, [el entrenador de los Nets Steve Nash] Y [el propietario] Joe Tsai and everyone for the last 24, 48 hours.

“Again, they are not easy [estas decisiones], but I think that’s something we pride ourselves on: being open and honest. James was honest with us and we were honest with him. I think it’s a move that allows him to have a fresh start, allows this team to have a fresh start, without trying to force things to work.

“If we realize that this is not going to work, short-term or long-term, then it’s better for both parties involved to say okay, that’s better.”

The decision to trade Harden meant that, just over a year after acquiring him, the Nets find themselves without him after seeing their Big 3 of Harden, Kevin Durant Y Kyrie Irving on the court together for a total of 16 games: 10 during the regular season, and another six in last year’s playoffs.

It also coincides with the Nets plummeting in Eastern Conference standings in the past six weeks, going from No. 1 at Christmas to No. 8 in the East, and as close in the rankings as the Sixers at No. 5 as the Washington Wizards at 11.

However, Marks said the decision to trade Harden was not due to the team’s recent struggles.

“It’s not just eight or nine games,” he said. “The things that we’ve had to deal with over the course of the last year since James has been here, it’s to be honest, the Big 3, in quotes, haven’t had a lot of time to play together for a variety of different circumstances. So , I think the frustration is more in that than in eight or nine games. Obviously it was not, and currently is not, a trend in the right direction, but we are not going to make a decision for one, two, five games, whatever. , the sample size has to be bigger. And at that point, we’re sitting here saying, ‘Yes. We’ve seen enough.’ From both sides.”

“Obviously we thank James immensely for everything he’s done. Let’s be honest, he came here and set all kinds of Brooklyn Nets records in such a short amount of time. He’s a great player, for sure. Again, this was not a easy call, but we’re very appreciative of what James did during his short time here, but at the same time adding these three players, Seth [Curry], Andrew [Drummond] and Ben, they help us in other facets that James did not fill.

This season, the main reason the trio was limited to just two games together was because of Irving’s decision not to comply with New York City’s vaccine mandate, which caused him to be off the team for the first few weeks. two months into the season, only to return last month to begin playing only road games.

Asked if Irving’s decision and the uncertainty it created were the cause of Harden’s frustration with the Nets, Marks said no one is more frustrated than Irving himself. He then went on to say that Irving hopes things will change regarding the city’s vaccination mandate, an indication that Irving won’t reconsider his stance on getting vaccinated so he can play in home games while the rule remains in place.

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Nets GM: ‘It’s not easy’ to get out of Harden