James Harden rejects OKC Offer / *Traded* to Rockets

[Triumph36]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

Do not underestimate the power of the Asian voter.

this might be true if all the spots were based on fan voting.

still can't believe okc would do this. now? at least give it one more shot with harden this season, then reevaluate afterwards.

 

[Goldin Brown]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

If I'm Chris Grant, I'm on the horn to Presti to see if he still has any interest in Andy.

 

[Birdy89]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

this might be true if all the spots were based on fan voting.

still can't believe okc would do this. now? at least give it one more shot with harden this season, then reevaluate afterwards.

It would have been a huge distraction all year, and you don't blow the team up at the trade deadline when you know you are a contender as they are.

They just couldn't afford a 3rd max guy given all their other salary commitments. Knowing he wouldn't sign for less now was the time.

The old days of dollar for dollar penalties are over for going over the cap, and the prospect of 3 and 4 to 1 penalties is scaring owners and making them think a little more long term than days past where it was just go over by as much as you wanted because 1:1 was not a deterrent to do so.

 

[Birdy89]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

If I'm Chris Grant, I'm on the horn to Presti to see if he still has any interest in Andy.

That ship has sailed. They have a lot of money already tied up in Ibaka and Perkins, particularly with Ibaka's extension about to kick in.

 

[Rich]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

This is a god awful trade for Houston. Harden is not a number 1 guy. You can't pay him number 1 guy money unless you already have a number 1 guy and own his bird rights. Houston has no number 1 guy and now is going to be running around James Harden as their best player, and god knows who as their second best player, for the next 4 years. Yea, that team is going nowhere quickly.

Moreover, OKC got a guy who very well might end up being a better player than Harden. Am I sure of it? No. But Jeremy Lamb certainly has the potential. And if that Raptors pick lands in the lottery....well, they'll have clearly made out better in the deal. Also, any word on the Mavs pick protection? THat team could easily be a lottery team this year.

 

[Triumph36]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

If I'm Chris Grant, I'm on the horn to Presti to see if he still has any interest in Andy.

okc traded harden, not ibaka.

It would have been a huge distraction all year, and you don't blow the team up at the trade deadline when you know you are a contender as they are.

They just couldn't afford a 3rd max guy given all their other salary commitments. Knowing he wouldn't sign for less now was the time.

The old days of dollar for dollar penalties are over for going over the cap, and the prospect of 3 and 4 to 1 penalties is scaring owners and making them think a little more long term than days past where it was just go over by as much as you wanted because 1:1 was not a deterrent to do so.

i didn't mean at the deadline; i meant after the season.

i just don't think you can focus on building such a bright future, then step off the pedal at the last second because you're scared of opening the checkbook. okc has been in the top 5-10 in attendance for years, and will be for the next 5+ years too. if you wanna contend, more often than not (read: unless you own the lakers) you're gonna have to sacrifice $$$.

okc traded the best young sg in the game for kevin martin's expiring contract, jeremy lamb, and what will probably be pick #10 or something. lol.

eta: and if you wanna push the financial ramifications as justification, then i'll still argue harden > westbrook, esp playing next to kevin durant. now they are basically going all in with durant, westbrook, and ibaka.

 

[BimboColesHair]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

This is a god awful trade for Houston. Harden is not a number 1 guy. You can't pay him number 1 guy money unless you already have a number 1 guy and own his bird rights. Houston has no number 1 guy and now is going to be running around James Harden as their best player, and god knows who as their second best player, for the next 4 years. Yea, that team is going nowhere quickly.

Moreover, OKC got a guy who very well might end up being a better player than Harden. Am I sure of it? No. But Jeremy Lamb certainly has the potential. And if that Raptors pick lands in the lottery....well, they'll have clearly made out better in the deal. Also, any word on the Mavs pick protection? THat team could easily be a lottery team this year.

Not saying I disagree with what you are saying about paying Harden #1 guy money, but it's not like he has been given a chance to be "the man" on a team yet. It's going to be interesting to see what kind of stats Harden puts up without having to play 3rd fiddle to Durant and Westbrook. I can see a 22-5-5 season coming up for him if Houston decides to focus their offense around him.

 

[Rich]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

okc traded harden, not ibaka.

i didn't mean at the deadline; i meant after the season.

i just don't think you can focus on building such a bright future, then step off the pedal at the last second because you're scared of opening the checkbook. okc has been in the top 5-10 in attendance for years, and will be for the next 5+ years too. if you wanna contend, more often than not (read: unless you own the lakers) you're gonna have to sacrifice $$$.

okc traded the best young sg in the game for kevin martin's expiring contract, jeremy lamb, and what will probably be pick #10 or something. lol.

eta: and if you wanna push the financial ramifications as justification, then i'll still argue harden > westbrook, esp playing next to kevin durant. now they are basically going all in with durant, westbrook, and ibaka.

I mean you can keep pushing that but you'd be wrong.

 

[Birdy89]

i just don't think you can focus on building such a bright future, then step off the pedal at the last second because you're scared of opening the checkbook. okc has been in the top 5-10 in attendance for years, and will be for the next 5+ years too. if you wanna contend, more often than not (read: unless you own the lakers) you're gonna have to sacrifice $$$.

They have opened the checkbook. They have 2 max players, a $12 million a year guy and a $9 million a year guy.

Harden would have been a 3rd max player.

No team in the new cap era has added 3 max guys plus a $12 million dollar guy beyond 2014. Not 1 team.

I can promise you the Cavs won't either because of how penal the penalties are.

You do realize this isn't 2008 anymore with the cap penalties don't you?

The new CBA PUNISHES teams that draft well by making it financially impossible to keep a team together.

 

[Huber.]

Meh, neither team will win an NBA championship.

 

[tn819]

Fiscally: OKC wins in a huge way with better flexibility long and short-term (A-), Houston is tied up (C+)
Talent-wise: Houston wins in the short-term (A-), but OKC gets replacement shooters, youth, and picks so there is no reason to think they won't walk away as the winner in this category (B could be A-/A)
Chemistry: Houston gets a big boost with the addition of big-time player (B+), and the unfortunate nature of NBA economics wipe away off some of the shine from the Thunder core 4 (C)

Presti salvages a bad situation and I think positions OKC in an unbelievable position long term. If these picks pan out, this has the potential to be a landmark trade for the Thunder.

If Harden makes the leap in a starring role, then Houston feels they got an all-star out of the deal and the price was worth it. This has the hallmarks of a possible win-win trade all over it, IF Harden really emerges as a star. Houston messed up with the cap-tying moves for Asik and Li, but they have been aiming for a star player for a while now and I think they got it. I predict Harden reaches 22-23 points next year with good efficiency. If anything, they are fun and relevant again. This trade and offseason puts Morley's statistical method and evaluation to the test in a major way.

It will be great to see how this unfolds in the future, but the league does have interesting retooled squads in the West. It does reduce OKC's strong threat to Miami next year because they lost talent short-term. Lebron probably is more likely to get his second ring.

 

[Triumph36]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

I mean you can keep pushing that but you'd be wrong.

except no. but you can keep saying that as westbrook chucks away while durant sits wide open, and okc goes from having the brightest future in the league to not even getting a title out of it during kd's tenure there.

in other news, i love ta:

Tony Allen ‏@aa000G9
Harding traded!

 

[mofire]

Re: James Harden rejects 4 year/ $52 Million OKC Offer

And offer what? They needed a proven player to replace him obviously... who is our proven player who can put the ball in the bucket to offer?

I'm not complaining or anything it just would have been nice to try and make a run at this type o player. He's 22 or 23 and would of fit perfectly for our team. I do like what okc got, better then what we could have offered.

 

[Amherstcavsfan]

I will want nothing to do with Harden's contract over the next 4 years. He's going to flop as the franchise player in Houston.

 

[B Mac]

Unbelieveable.

I cant believe this trade happened so close to the start of the season. When was the last time a trade of this magnitude happened at this time of year? I honestly cant remember one.

As always, Im trying to figure out how the Cavs can somehow benefit off of this. I see Varejao to OKC was already mentioned, and while that was my first thought as well, I agree that he isnt the best fit with Ibaka and Perkins already there. By the way, wow does Perkins have a bad contract.