Report: Nets Wouldn't Trade Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Joe Harris for Harden

The Brooklyn Nets were reportedly willing to trade any of their players except for Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving or Joe Harris in the James Harden deal, according to a report from Kelly Iko and Sam Amick of The Athletic. 

It's no surprise that Durant and Irving wouldn't be in the deal. The Nets signed Harris to a four-year, $75 million contract in the offseason, and his shooting and floor-spacing have made him a crucial offensive weapon. 

The deal was a massive, four-team affair:

• The Rockets acquired Victor Oladipo, Dante Exum, Rodions Kurucs, three unprotected first-round picks from the Nets (2022, 2024, 2026), an unprotected 2022 first-rounder from the Milwaukee Bucks (via the Cleveland Cavaliers) and four first-round pick swaps with the Nets (2021, 2023, 2025, 2027).
• The Nets acquired Harden and a 2024 second-round pick from the Cavaliers. 
• The Cavs acquired Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince.
• The Indiana Pacers acquired Caris LeVert and a 2023 second-round pick (from Houston). 

"Brooklyn went Full Monty," an executive told Iko and Amick. "Desperation was in the cards, and there's nothing better in this league than to have desperation. ... [The Rockets] are banking on it blowing up."

Harden looked pretty darn good in his debut with the team, scoring 32 points, dishing out 14 assists and nabbing 12 rebounds in 40 minutes as the Nets beat the Orlando Magic on Saturday 122-115. The 31-year-old Harden looked more like the perennial MVP candidate he's become in recent years and much less like the sulking, disinterested player he had become in his final days with the Rockets. 

Harden, Durant and Harris coexisted just fine in their first game together, with Durant scoring a game-high 42 points and Harris adding 17 points on 4-of-9 shooting from three. The question will be how Irving—who will miss his seventh straight game Monday as he "continues to ramp up his conditioning," per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski—adjusts to being the third option in Brooklyn's offense. 

Somebody is going to have to sacrifice, and Harden and Durant are former offensive MVPs and arguably the two most talented scorers in the NBA.

Both Irving and Harden are accustomed to having the ball in their hands, with Harden's last three pairings will ball-dominant lead guards—Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook and John Wall—ending with the former two asking to be traded and the latter spending a brief period with the wantaway Harden. 

The nice thing for Brooklyn is that if Irving does decide he no longer fits in Brooklyn and tries to force a move, the Nets still have the Harden-Durant pairing. Given everything they gave up to get it, it better work.