Whatever denials might exist as the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers stage a high-stakes game of NBA trade deadline chicken, sources across the league said Monday there absolutely is a chance of a James Harden-Ben Simmons trade happening before 3 p.m. ET Thursday.
It is a complex and uncertain negotiation, the likes of which the NBA rarely sees. And it has put this deadline on a razor's edge: The league will either witness a title-shifting blockbuster that could shape the next few years or a temporary reprieve that sets up an offseason showdown between the same teams.
Here are the key stakeholders: