Would have been sweet.
The Wojnarowski piece is kind of amazing. He has some crazy sources, 'cause no-one else even got a whiff of this story before he broke it. And he seemingly knew EVERYTHING.
Paranoid subplot: Harden's agent was pushing hard for a max deal even after being told that the alternative was an immediate trade to Houston (which of course helps the Lakers immediately, as everyone noted). His agent is....Rob Pelinka. His biggest client by far? Kobe Bean fucking Bryant
Probably didn't affect things at all, given that Harden himself surely wanted the max too, but still. I'm sure the agent could have spun it in the direction of waiting-and-seeing 'til trade deadline or next offseason....