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Kendrick Perkins says James Harden wants trade to Brooklyn and it can’t be true

ByJerry Trotta|
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 01: James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets is defended by Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on November 01, 2019 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 01: James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets is defended by Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on November 01, 2019 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)

ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins said that Rockets star James Harden wants to be traded to the Nets and we don’t believe him.

Basketball fans surprisingly didn’t have to wait very long into the offseason for headline-grabbing drama to unfold. Just as essential dates for the upcoming campaign were being revealed by insiders, the sheer turmoil within the Houston Rockets organization has started leaking in waves.

Their longtime head coach and general manager have departed and the latest buzz suggests that star guards James Harden and Russell Westbrook are concerned with the direction and culture of the franchise, which has promptly sparked all sorts of trade rumors.

Amazingly enough, the Brooklyn Nets have found their way into the conversation, as ESPN analyst and former NBA veteran Kendrick Perkins doubled down on his source who claims that Harden is seeking a move to either Brooklyn or Philadelphia, and it simply can’t be true.

For starters, Perkins is regularly featured on famed Twitter account “Freezing Cold Takes,” which flames media members for woefully erroneous scoops and opinions. What kind of sources could he possibly have? Our guess is that they comprise of opinionated former colleagues as opposed to in-the-know league executives.

More importantly, however, is the fact that Harden, as great as he is, is incapable of playing with former stars without some sort of controversy materializing. It’s well-documented that he didn’t get along with former Rockets teammate Chris Paul. Additionally, Westbrook, one of his closest friends in the world, seemingly didn’t think twice about making it known that he wants to play anywhere else but Houston.

If Harden couldn’t make it work with Paul and Westbrook — both of whom altered their playing styles to cater to him — we dread the thought of pairing him alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, two of the most ego-driven superstars in the league today, on the Nets.

Outside of Philadelphia, who Perkins ironically claimed to be Harden’s other preferred destination, we literally couldn’t think of a worse landing spot for the former MVP. The bottom line is that the Nets would be out of their minds to mortgage their future (in terms of draft picks) and cripple themselves financially to trade for a player who needs the ball in his hands for a minimum of 15 seconds per possession to be effective.

Nothing we’ve seen from Harden has suggested that he’d be willing to forfeit being the primary ball-handler and scorer for the chance to compete for a championship. The Rockets have tried matching him with superstars in the past, and all that came out of it was one trip to the Western Conference Finals and two semifinal exits.

Again, given Perkins’ sketchy track record on the NBA scoop front and Harden’s tendency to clash when partnered with one superstar (let alone two), leads us to believe that the Nets are nowhere near a landing spot for the 31-year-old.

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