It's the core of Harvard's argument! There's nothing dishonest or not-thorough about saying so. If Harvard were able to meet its diversity and academic excellence goals through different criteria, then they would have no grounds for asking to be able to use race as an explicit factor.

They literally say exactly this in their petition: "After considering 13 alternatives, including those proposed by SFFA, the [admissions process evaluation] committee concluded that none would currently allow Harvard to achieve the educational benefits of diversity while maintaining its standards of excellence" (https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/20/20-1199/230739/20220725122633156_20-1199%20bs.pdf, page 18).

It's not just "simulation D".

So, since you seem to think these are the only possibilities worth mentioning, have you been dishonest, or not thorough?