© Thomas Shea | 2019 May 10
The Warriors shocked the world when they signed Kevin Durant in 2016, but they reportedly had an even wilder plan up their sleeve this offseason.
Before the crushing news broke that Klay Thompson had torn his Achilles tendon and would be lost for another season, Golden State called the collapsing Houston Rockets in an attempt to work out a deal for former MVP James Harden.
Here’s Shams Charania with the report:
The Warriors made a call for James Harden to try to create a Curry-Klay-Harden trio before the injury. ?@ShamsCharania ?
EPISODE: https://t.co/gq3yj65s1U pic.twitter.com/V6GL5cK47w
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) December 1, 2020
“(Harden) clearly made it known in Houston that he wanted to be on a contender somewhere else,” Charania said on the Load Management podcast.
“The Warriors at one point made a call for James Harden…I heard that was a little bit before the injury to Klay.”
Assuming offloading Klay wasn’t part of that deal, the trade would’ve given the Warriors the almost unfathomable backcourt of Stephen Curry, Thompson and Harden.
While this scenario is obviously absurd to think about, it actually makes more sense from a basketball standpoint then Harden to Brooklyn, where he’d be sharing the floor with ball-dominant stars Kyrie Irving and Durant. Both Thompson and Curry are excellent off-ball players, their ability to catch and shoot both primary weapons in their skillset. One can imagine Harden running high pick and rolls, making the defense choose between equally nightmarish scenarios of a Curry-Thompson 3-pointer or a Harden drive to the basket.
Obviously Harden’s usage would have to be cut significantly. You can’t share the floor with Curry and Thompson and dribble the ball for 20 seconds every possession. As a long time Warriors rival, Harden may not have been welcomed by the fanbase with open arms, but it’s fun to imagine the three on the same team, in the same way it’s fun to imagine other things that are absolute pipe dreams.