It’s been just over one week since the massive James Harden trade that turned the NBA on its side. I wanted to wait for some time to pass before making any judgments. The initial hot takes were obvious, how would Harden mesh with Durant and Irving, how would Steve Nash handle 3 superstar egos, what happens to the Rockets without its superstar for the past 7-8 years.

Over the past week and a half, we’ve been able to take a look at how each of the four teams has faired since the massive trade.

Brooklyn Nets

Feels like we need to start with the Brooklyn Nets, being the recipient of the best player involved in the trades. Bringing in James Harden, losing control of 8 years worth of draft picks, and letting go of Taurean Prince and Jarrett Allen is a major change for the Nets executives and locker room. Harden is agreed to be a top 10 player, so what how would it work to combine him and Kevin Durant again. Remember, they went to the NBA Finals in 2012 in Oklahoma City, where Harden was the primary option off the bench and would often help them close games.

By bringing in Harden, the Nets created the newest Big 3 in the league, an ideal that hasn’t been practiced in over a year. But welcoming Harden to the court would prove to be more difficult than they had originally thought. Steve Nash and his coaching staff are not presented with a short rotation, and it was shown in the very first game that all 3 superstars played against the Cavaliers going to double overtime. Nash ended up playing Durant (who’s coming off a year off due to an Achilles tear) 50 minutes, Harden 50 minutes, and Irving 48 minutes (who hadn’t played for 2 weeks due to personal reasons). This may be a troubling concern for the team going forward, as they traded away a lot of depth in order to bring in Harden.

Relying on these 3 guys, with Jeff Green and Joe Harris down the stretch will not only wear them out, but also makes them susceptible to being dominated inside. The Nets executives are not done, we can expect them to continue making moves during the season. From the buyout market to trade deadline, we can guarantee that the Nets will be hunting for more role players to eat up some minutes for the big 3.

Houston Rockets

After disappointing playoff runs, multiple MVPs, social media scandals involving the GM, and oh yeah, 3 different superstar partnerships, the Houston Rockets as we knew it finally fell apart. The Rockets gave it all they could, but inevitably fell to the Warriors dynasty multiple times and then the Lakers in the NBA Bubble. The Rockets brought in all the names that they believed would fit with Harden; Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, and then this old Thunder teammate Russell Westbrook.

Now that Harden has been moved, the Rockets can begin their pseudo-rebuilding process behind John Wall, Christian Wood, and Victor Oladipo. Oladipo was the most recent acquisition, along with the ability to control Brooklyn’s next 8 draft picks. With Oladipo and Wall, the Rockets have one of the best defensive backcourts in the league. If Christian Wood is able to continue making strides at this rate, they will have one of the best core units going forward if everyone can stay healthy. All Houston needs to work on now is securing Oladipo during the offseason since his contract is up at the end of the year.

Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers had a simple involvement in this trade. They were able to get rid of Victor Oladipo’s contract, since he already expressed his desire to play in another city, namely Miami. They brought in Caris LeVert who could be a reliable scoring wing in the future, and they were handed a bunch of cash to level off the trade. This sounds like a great deal, except for one little hiccup. During LeVert’s physical to finalize the trade, the team discovered a small mass on his kidney.  For that reason, LeVert has been sidelined since the trade went down. But, the situation seems optimistic for Indiana if he is able to return to a similar playing condition once his health clears up.

Otherwise, the Pacers can rest easy leaving their franchise in the reliable hands of Malcolm Brogdon and Damontas Sabonis, who has emerged as one of the best young big men in the league.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavaliers may have benefited the most out of this trade. Yes, I went there. This was one of the few trades that turned out to be a winning situation for each of the teams, but the Cavaliers may have benefited the most. In Jarrett Allen, the Cavaliers get their big man of the future rather than having to pay out Andre Drummond this off season. The Cavaliers have a history of taking the cheap way out.