Now that the crazy NBA trade deadline has arrived, who are the winners and losers? If only the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers traded All-Stars James Harden and Ben Simmons as part of a five-player trade at the deadline, it would be a league-shaking event.

Now that the crazy NBA trade deadline has arrived, who are the winners and losers? If the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers trade All-Stars James Harden and Ben Simmons as part of a five-player trade at the deadline, it would be a league-shaking event. The deal only highlights a series of other high-profile trades, some of which featured All-Star Domantas Sabonis to the Sacramento Kings and C.J. McCollum to the New Orleans Pelicans, that occurred before Thursday. Several trades, including a Harden-Simmons trade, have been discussed for some time. Others, notably the Dallas Mavericks sending Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards, seemed to come out of nowhere. As we continue to sort through the fallout from the trades of the past week – how many times did Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Tomas Satoransky switch teams again? — Let’s take a look at the big picture in the changed NBA landscape. Here's a discussion of the winners and losers following the trade deadline, starting with the two All-Stars who reportedly got the deals they both wanted.

Winners: James Harden and Ben Simmons

It took him nearly eight months so far to give back a significant portion of his 2021-22 salary (more than $1,900 in fines, according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne last week million), but Simmons got the change he wanted after the 2021 playoffs ended in indefensible fashion for him and the Philadelphia 76ers. In Harden's case, it's unclear exactly how long he wanted to be traded after being forced to go to the Brooklyn Nets just a year ago, but in the process, Kyrie Irving was ineligible for home games as well as disappointing regular season. The Nets led him to find a way out. A reunion with Philadelphia vice president of basketball operations Daryl Morey made sense for Harden given their successful partnership with the Houston Rockets, and both parties made it happen at the deadline. The timing of the trade now allows Harden to get the biggest extension this offseason without having to threaten the Nets that he'll leave in free agency and spend less money to do it.

Losers: Small-market teams hoping to land Simmons

Part of what makes Simmons' trade request so unusual is that he has more than three full years left on his contract, making him a player of his ilk who typically can't. Players added to the squad in out-of-town non-glamorous destinations are a more realistic option. draft. Alas, Harden's emergence meant Simmons ended up on a team in Brooklyn.

Winners: Eastern Conference Playoffs Losers: Other Eastern Conference contenders

We may have to go back to the Chicago Bulls' second three-peat to find this expected Eastern Conference playoff run. The top eight teams in the East are already separated by just 5.5 games in the standings. (Contrast that with the West, where the first-place Phoenix Suns are 18 games ahead of the eighth-place Los Angeles Clippers.) Now, add to that the intrigue of the Sixers and Nets trying to combine star players with championship expectations. I still think the current top two teams, the Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat, are the most likely to advance to the Eastern Conference. Still, if Harden isn't happy in Brooklyn and Simmons is on the sidelines, this road will be much easier. Thursday's trade makes the Eastern Conference's path to the NBA Finals even more difficult.

Winners: Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns

The top of the Western Conference has Opposite tumbleweed. It's unclear how the Mavericks strengthened themselves by trading Porzingis for Davis Bertans and Spencer Dinwiddie, while the Utah Jazz only added unproven reserves Alexander Walker and Juancho Hernan Gomez. That's good news for the top two teams in the West -- especially the Suns, who did make some small moves that could pay off.I like Phoenix to bring Torrey Craig back to the reserves as a defensive specialist at the expense of little-used Jalen Smith and a second-round pick.

Winner: Game for No. 10 in the West

More generally, you could say entering the tournament has the intended effect of making more teams more competitive later on. Big fireworks in the West came from teams below .500, with the Pelicans making an aggressive, now-winning move for McCollum and the Kings following up by trading Sabonis and then adding Donte DiVincenzo on Thursday. Unless the Los Angeles Lakers are in free fall, only one of these two teams is likely to make the play-in round. Another one may be disappointed after loading.

Winner: 2021-22 Oklahoma City Thunder

Despite having more than $300,000 in cap space, Oklahoma City made just one trade before the deadline, adding forward KZ Okpala $1.8 million salary. According to my ESPN colleague Bobby Marks, that puts the Thunder's minimum salary (90% of the salary cap) a historic $23 million below what's known as the floor. We've seen teams sign creative contracts to non-guaranteed seasons ahead after the trade deadline, including Oklahoma City (Gabriel Dekker) and the New York Knicks (Luka Verdot) last season. Sa). These guys factor millions into the minimum team salary. While it's reasonable for the Thunder to get there this year, it will be a challenge. If not, the NBPA will allocate the gap among players on Oklahoma City's roster as a windfall bonus.

Winner: Non-luxury tax team

Teams also were less aggressive than expected in reducing the tax before the deadline. The Portland Trail Blazers have done a good job getting out of the tax with their series of trades, while the Boston Celtics should avoid it unless Jaylen Brown gets the incentive to push deep into the playoffs. The remaining 23 non-tax teams will split 50 percent of the $480 million in taxes, meaning each team is allocated more than $10 million.