[Feigen] expectation is that Butler will opt out and Rockets plan to target him in Free Agency

We have encountered Harden.

 

The same james who wanted him to come here specifically. Sure that makes a ton of sense. As @napalm06 Said some of y’all are drama queens for sure

 

IMO KO will be a classic 'overpay'; Rox' best roster-filling-outs start soon after 7/7 when the $ has dried up and guys are playing musical uh, contracts.

 

If we have to give up ANYONE at all( I would prefer itd be Capela). I really hate to say that though. Its real easy for some of you dudes to just cut dudes loose haha. Danny Ainge would be proud lol and given what happend with Aaron Baynes thats not a compliment(im kidding....kinda).

 

of course he’s a legit rotation player, but I’m just saying that there’s levels to this...Butler is a legit star and >>>EG

u should see what the difference in the Wolves’ offensive and defensive rating was when Butler was on and off the floor...the difference was staggering

Butler was the best player for a very talented Philly team during the playoffs...he averaged 22, 7, and 6 in that series vs Toronto...EG could never

Jimmy is a dog and would be a fan favorite here...if only God could bless us this summer with his arrival

 

I bet Harden has promised him touches and shot attempts, but towards season end, watch him ruin that promise.

 

Lolz

 

a forward that can create for himself and others at a high level AND plays excellent defense...lemme stop dreaming before I get disappointed

 

Unless Harden defers PG duties to Paul and decides to play off the ball/move without the ball...... standing around the perimeter and jacking up 3’s is exactly what Butler will be doing.

Not picking on Harden it’s just a fact. As long as Harden is on this team we’re not re-inventing the wheel and we will play the same offense unless he decides to stop chasing scoring titles and plays a more team oriented offense.

The last time we had another dynamic playmaker that could score and create for others we didn’t even get to see what he was capable of. He was useless standing around with limited touches and jacking up 3’s when he did get the ball.

I’m talking about Lou Williams. He went from 14.9ppg and 2.4apg with 5.6 3 pointers attempted per game while he was here.

With the Clippers with virtually the same minutes and the same role coming off the bench he put up 20ppg and 5.4apg with 3.9 3 pointers attempted per game. He looked like a legit All Star.

In the playoffs Lou put up 22ppg, 7.7apg only 3 3pointers attempted per game again all off the bench. He led the Clippers to the same number of wins as Harden against GSW with a healthy Durant for all 6.

That supposed recent rumor that Harden would insist on coming in and playing with the second unit only to disrupt chemistry and stop other guys from getting into the flow of the game seems to hold quite a bit of merit to me. Perhaps Harden could’ve done a better job of “load management”, resting in the regular season and trusting his teammates instead of going all out in the regular season chasing MVP’s only to run out of gas and then depend on teammates when they barely touched the ball all season.

 

Naw, that’s being saved for Kawhi.

 

The way I see it... there are 2 conversations that are becoming more inextricably tied when they shouldn't be: the fit between James, Jimmy, and Cp3; and the implications of Cp3's contract going forward beyond 2020 season.

SAS on TV yesterday said that it would be a terrible fit. Pushed further into the convo, he starts talking about CP's contract as if it's the reason for a bad fit, which makes zero sense.

Rockets want to win now. James + Jimmy + CP >>> James + Jimmy. That simple. The entire First Take show is getting on my nerves, but I have to keep an ear because I know their voice gets heard by the players. The conspirator in me is starting to come out. All this CP drama is smokescreen to get Jimmy to stay away from what appears to be an unstable organization - taking every advantage of Tillman talking his mouth off. They are the worst. Max ain't going to fool me this season.

 

Right now, the Rockets are $16 million over the salary cap. Therefore, they have to clear nearly $50 million in salary to have the ability to offer a maximum salary contract in free agency.

To match salaries in a S&T at the max, the Rockets have to send out roughly $24.5 million in salary.

 

This is the thing that makes me laugh. Now, anytime Rockets conversation comes up it all centers around "hey, look at CP's contract" and like that is the root of all evils.

Can the team play better defense? Hey, look at CP3's contract!
Can the team be better balanced offensively? Hey, look at CP3's contract!
CP and Harden beefing? Hey, look at CP3's contract!
Will the team get defensive assistant coaches? Hey, look at CP3's contract!
I don't like their jerseys Hey, look at CP3's contract!
Capela plays soft Hey, look at CP3's contract!

It would be nice to have more nuance.

 

https://theathletic.com/1037825/201...tate-houstons-draft-and-free-agency-activity/

Anything new in this article that someone would like to share?

 

Suns guard Tyler Johnson has exercised his $19.25M player option for the 2019-20 season, league sources tell ESPN.

 

It reminds me a lot about how people talk about our offense during the POs and yet no one talked about our defense or our rebounding.

 

Capela and Gordon are already gone. If we keep either or it’s because we couldn’t land anybody worth while

 

Mr. Jimmy will you accept our crumbs please?

 

Harden took at backseat to KD and Westbrook, so I don't see an issue with them working together on offense. Problem with Paul is he isn't a scorer per se and is undersized at his position. Harden has the individual stats and awards now so he should defer a bit more and play team ball so we can win the chip. It's time...