The Rockets and CP3 clearly AREN'T trading Harden for Giannis simply because: Harden + CP3 >>>>>>>>>> CP3/Giannis or CP3/Blake/DJ
Giannis is a boxscore machine, but he isn't even better than CP3, let alone James Harden. Put Chris Paul in the East and you have a top 4 seed every single year, no matter what. Hell, he has basically been doing that out West for over a decade.
I'll say this... People here are downplaying Giannis...a lot. He's 22 putting up MVP numbers right now. This guy right now has no ceiling, 2-3 years from now he could easily be the best player in the NBA. You have to see this guy play, he does what he does so easily. It's not like a Lowry or Derozan game, where you can tell they are going as hard as they can, it's more like he's just strolling up and down the floor collecting shots and blocks rather casually. You can just tell by his demeanor how much easier he's finding the game now and it is pretty terrifying what this guy can be when he's 25.
Ok, I disagree. Well, not the part with Blake/DJ... but I have absolutely no idea why you keep bringing that up. Giannis is >>>>> Blake, assuming that's the comparison you're trying to make. Also no idea why you keep bringing up DJs name? Plus the fact that the entire rest of the team and coaching staff would be different... The Clippers would have traded Blake for Giannis in a heartbeat.
so how many games do you think cp3 ego giannis RA capela and a bench of ariza, tucker, lmm, nene being in the West can win?
Sure cause your benevolent ass has no idea what tf is up or down. Yeah this guy is clearly better than Harden as it is at this moment, but he'll need a 10 year window for my DDD ass to bet on him. OK! That showed me!!! You're typical, let me hype this guy up over that guy then back down when someone makes a sensible wager. If I take on your bet it will be me against the rest of the NBA with the Rockets tugging my boat... if they don't beat the rest of the NBA you're a clear winner. If you take my bet then it's one for one. You have a horse and so do I. But your ridiculous ass is just too fu**in r****ded to understand the logic in that. Go back to fantasy world. Jayz my ass, you're a disgrace to that DSL camel.
Don't know. What I noted was I think they have as good if not a better shot at making a deeper run in the playoffs. CP3 is great. Harden is great. It's very odd that they're paired together when the Rockets had other problems besides PG. But I get why CP3 was added - because he would come. But fit matters. Harden + CP3 won't be seamless. And they're two high ball usage guys who would both be maximized in an MDA offense by being high ball usage in a way where an MDA offense really caters to their skill-sets. The line up you quoted has a better balance of skill set across positions and sizes, and across offense and defense. I'm not sure if RA would start, or Ariza with Giannis at the PF. In any case it's a hypothetical. If (i) Harden and CP3 can mesh in a way that A+B > C, and (ii) Harden can not put up goose eggs in the playoffs, then I'll take Harden. As I've said many times in this thread. It's not JUST about GSW being there and everyone else taking their ball and going home. And it's not JUST about Harden having one or more wtf type games every playoffs. It's not JUST about Harden being deficient defensively, or high turnover, or prone to stand around or go into iso ball jack threes mode to try and pull himself out of a funk... It's about all those things together, combined with the Rockets current cap situation and asset status. If Harden's going to improve in the playoffs to regular season Harden, GREAT!
I'd gladly bet the rockets win in the next 4 years. Everyone's goal is to win a championship, although your goal is to also dismiss harden being able to win one. Who beats the warriors? Lebron isn't even able to anymore. Lol... I will gladly root and believe harden is capable and WILL win one over the next 4 years by the simple fact of luck and even how dominant gsw is I don't believe 5 in a row is possible in this league; while also maintaining that we have the best odds to win if it isn't gsw. But it's a pretty disingenuous statement that "harden can't do it" right? Because that basically means your hedging your statement with gsw and their dominance AS WELL as taking the field over the rockets in case they don't. Just admit, you don't like harden and would rather suck and have NO shot in the next 4 years rather than say he, like pretty much every superstar, has his issues but ultimately gives us our best chance at winning a ship in the next 4 years. I DO NOT want to be the fuucking mavs, the suns, or a 10 year Sacramento. We spun he wheels of mediocrity and somehow became contenders unconventionally. You want to wait 4 years to compete, go be a Denver nuggets fan. Lame
hes definitely improving and becoming close to un-guardable. ill even say you can't stop him if he gets the ball right outside the painted area. as of now though, while the numbers are pretty good, the translation to team success still isn't there. But I think that should come with time. At this rate, I agree 2-3 years from now, he could be the best player in the league, but that means he should be leading his team to the playoffs and a top seed by that time easily. Im anxious to see his continuing progress
You're really dumb right? I'll make this SUPER EASY FOR YOU. I proposed a bet. You didn't like it, so changed the terms of it. Your bet makes no sense. It's based on 2 things happening. Both could happen. Neither could happen. It's dumb. Moreover, it's not what I asked in my original bet post. I don't need to take your bet, because I didn't propose it and never said it (Giannis winning a ring) would happen in the next 4 years. See... you're arguing something I never said or proposed... So again, I'm make this SUPER EASY FOR YOU. - Quote me where I said Giannis would win a ring in the next 4 years? And on the Bucks, no less. Even better!! - Quote me where I said Giannis is better than Harden at the moment? Then quote me where I said "clearly" better than Harden at the moment. I don't think you even understand where your reading comprehension skills failed. So since you want to keep coming back at me with things you think I said... QUOTE ME saying it!
Just admit it... you've read very few of my posts in this thread. Because like many others, you clearly have no clue what I've said in this thread. I root for Harden as much as any die hard Rockets fan. $50 bucks then?
LOL so called "die hard Rockets fan" betting his money on the Rockets not winning a ring... curious in 4 years what's the deepest in the playoffs Giannis can reach? Can he reach the finals in 4 years in the Least?
I've read quite a lot of it, not all because it hurts my brain to read such fodder. What's the 50$, harden wins a championship on the rockets in the next 4 years? As the betting man that I am, this is insanely low odds for a 1-1 return. Meanwhile, this is incredibly great odds for you on a 1-1 return. But in jest, I'm willing to do a $50 tip jar bet that harden wins a championship in the next 4 years. Be the least I could for this site, especially if we ultimately win a ship. Deal?
so let say Giannis/Cp3 having won 45 games in the regular season has a better chance of beating a 65+ win GS team in the first wound as compared to a Harden/CP3 who has won 60 games against a 45 win team in the first round?
You must not have read very much of it. It goes back to last May mind you. Position has been very clear. You can call it fodder if you want... it doesn't support your completely made up conclusions in the prior post. - Harden under-performs in the playoffs. Relative to his regular season performance. And relative to other super star type players and how they performed in the playoffs relative to their regular season performance. I have laid this out with stats. Which show both larger drops in PER (his PER typically drops 10%, often much more in the playoffs), and much lower single game gamescores for Harden (where he's often had his worst game of the season, by far, in the playoffs, and his lowest gamescores in the playoffs multiple years are meaningfully lower than his peers). I've done this for guys on loaded teams, and for guys as the "sole" guy type player like Harden. This shouldn't surprise any real Rockets fans. They've seen this with their own eyes. - Harden has some fundamental flaws in his game that contribute to this. Bad defense. Carelessness with the ball. An over-reliance on FTA. Struggling more so than you'd want against athletic wing defenders... even if they aren't all-defense type guys. A tendency to ISO and over-dribble. And horrible off ball movement. Perhaps fundamental is too strong a word. Because they're not all permanent. As you've (and I have previously) noted, even the best of the best have flaws. MJ couldn't shoot from the outside for a while. Lebron is too willing a passer which hurts him in clutch situations. Kobe was too willing a shooter, and inefficient at times. Dirk wasn't the best defender. Hakeem struggled trusting his teammates. KD struggles when the pressure is super super super high and basically 100% on him. Harden needs to eliminate some of his flaws so that, like these other guys, if he is having an off game, in the playoffs or otherwise, it doesn't become a situation of having to bench him, or having to scratch your head to wonder why it seems like he isn't even trying. - The GSW are the GSW. It's just a fact. It doesn't mean you shouldn't try to beat them. But they're out ahead of the field in a way that very very very few teams have ever been that far ahead. - DM has done his best, but the Rockets aren't stacked with assets at this point. As for the bet... yes, a straight up $50 bet. The goal here is for the Rockets to win a championship as soon as possible. That's all I'm interested in. So if you want to extend 4 years to 6 years or whatever, that's fine.
Not sure about 8th seed, but the Rockets did win our 2nd ring as the 6th seed, which to this day, still stands as the lowest seed to win I believe.
