Is it any surprise that we're once again talking about all the good James Harden has been doing for the Los Angeles Clippers? Not only did he encourage the team to go after Bradley Beal, but he also played a significant part in allowing them to land John Collins as well.
It's been reported that Harden pushed for the Collins trade to get done. As a result of that coming to fruition, the Clippers opened room to bring on Beal, and their depth was significantly improved as a result. Harden now has a fantastically deep roster around him for the coming season.
We can see now that the trade for Collins was ultimately the catalyst for getting Beal on board. Collins is plenty talented on his own, but acquiring him was arguably the most pivotal move of LA's entire offseason for the fact that it set off a chain reaction that reshaped the roster.
Adding Collins basically allowed the Clippers to create a more healthy balance with their current roster. They avoided the scenario where they headed into next season too top-heavy, and instead spread more talent across multiple position groups. Depth was a big issue in the playoffs last season, and now that problem has been treated.
James Harden helped make the Clippers' excellent summer possible
Remember when Harden joked about the fact that he's not a system player, he is a system? Well, he kind of proved that once again this summer. Not only is James a connective piece on the hardwood, but he's got the same attributes off the court.
We've seen the Clippers make flashy offseason moves in the past, but they haven't always fit the needs of the roster. This summer has been starkly different. Each player Los Angeles has brought in serves to fit the team's overall vision rather than just chasing star power.
The Clippers now have a solid backup big in Brook Lopez, an excellent big wing in Collins, and two ball-handlers in Chris Paul and Beal that will be able to better balance out this team's offensive approach. Harden deserves a lot of credit for urging the team to pursue moves that are more practical rather than making some sort of all-in gamble.
If LA can find the kind of success we expect they'll be able to this coming season, we'll be looking back on Harden's influence to make the move for Collins as one of the pivotal points of the offseason.