Thunderous Intentions
Fansided

The James Harden trade: Five years later

By Austin Sternlicht

TULSA, OK- OCTOBER 3: James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets shoots the ball during the preseason game against the OKC Thunder on October 3, 2017 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Shane Bevel/NBAE via Getty Images)
TULSA, OK- OCTOBER 3: James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets shoots the ball during the preseason game against the OKC Thunder on October 3, 2017 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Shane Bevel/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 5
Next
OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 18: Jeremy Lamb
OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 18: Jeremy Lamb /

Kevin Martin was a nice player in his one season in OKC. He put up similar numbers to Harden in his final season with the Thunder. Martin was also a big reason the Westbrook-less Thunder were able to fend off the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs in 2013. Unfortunately for the Thunder, they were unable to bring back the free-agent-to-be as Martin signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves at the end of the season. Based on these comments, it’s clear Martin didn’t exactly enjoy his time in Oklahoma City.

Part of the reason Oklahoma City traded Harden to Houston was because they felt they would be receiving a long-term replacement at shooting guard in Jeremy Lamb. Picked 12th in the 2012 draft, Lamb seemed like a promising NBA wing. The 6’5 guard looked to have the size and skill to be a quality NBA player. For many reasons, most notably attitude and effort, Lamb simply never panned out. After three underwhelming seasons, Lamb was shipped to the Charlotte Hornets for a second round pick.

The other major disappointment from this trade is Mitch McGary. The power forward was drafted 21st overall in the 2014 draft. Like the Harden trade itself, it was a pick that didn’t make sense at the time and only continued to look worse. At the time, the Thunder had Serge Ibaka, Steven Adams, Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison, who could still contribute. It was puzzling that a team so close to a title would draft a player not in an area of need. McGary missed a majority of his final season at Michigan after undergoing back surgery. Injuries were a major reason McGary’s tenure with the Thunder was cut short.

In addition, he had multiple foot and leg injuries that caused him to miss significant development time his rookie season. His second year, McGary suffered a concussion in training camp that took him out of the rotation for good. Later that year, he took an undisclosed leave of absence from the team for “personal reasons”. McGary was eventually suspended 15 games for failing to comply with the NBA’s drug policy. He was cut prior to the 2016-17 season and is now out of the league. Had the Thunder taken someone like Rodney Hood or Kyle Anderson with that pick instead, we may be having a slightly different conversation.

The Thunder received five pieces in this trade. One was gone after a year, and two failed to contribute in a meaningful way. Thankfully for General Manager Sam Presti, Alex Abrines, and especially Steven Adams have turned into quality NBA players. Adams will probably never be an All-Star, and Abrines may be nothing more than an elite three-point shooter, but getting two key rotation pieces out of this trade saved it from being an utter disaster.

Home/Thunder News