Reworking a trade I posted a few days ago since Harden has other plans than opting in next year. A sign-and-trade is still possible but highly unlikely with Houston’s cap space.

ANYWAY …

Why Philly does this trade:

• Becomes arguably the best offensive team in the league overnight with Dame and Embiid comprising the most prolific scoring duo we’ve seen in some time. In this case, Philly also gets to dump Harris’ insanely large contract - which in turn would leave them with some cap space in the summer to bulk up the roster with some defensive pieces to play with these two.

• Losing Maxey will hurt in time, as I do think he has the potential to be an all star in the next few years. But by the time he reaches his potential, Embiid will be in his early-to-mid 30s and probably will not want to trust the process that much longer.

Why Portland does this trade:

• Time to reset. The idea of pairing Dame up with Scoot Henderson or Brandon Miller does sound enticing but even then, that’s still a team that is a far cry from contention in the West. The more appropriate move if they want to make a run with Dame would be to use the #3 pick this draft to pick up a big name. But that pick may not hold that much value and currently there doesn’t seem to be any big names available on the market.

• Maxey, along with additional 1sts, and whoever the Blazers draft this year, will provide the foundation of a fun, young group to get excited about in Portland. Yes, there will be some tough years. Yes, Dame loyalists will hate management for this move. But in time, with the luck of a few more ping pong balls bouncing their way, this team could be loaded with talent in 4-5 years. They should hit the reset button now before it’s too late.