To be fair, we hadn't just won 73 games, made it to the Finals, the year after winning a ring. When we traded for Drexler, he was already past his prime and so was Hakeem (at least in terms of athleticism compared to his earlier years). Durant joined an already legendary team a year after they set the record for most regular season wins. That's what turned people off. I much prefer to win with adversity than to have a winning team gifted to us. I want to see the trials and tribulations. However, I wouldn't turn down a HOF player who wants to play here, just saying in an ideal world, I'd prefer to have a really good team that was built naturally and not through super friend teams like Miami.
Woj: For now, the Thunder are fully committed to playing out the season with impending free agent Paul George. They still have hope that a strong run in the playoffs could convince him to re-sign in Oklahoma City. Nevertheless, the Lakers were the team to beat when the Thunder made the trade, and that probably hasn't changed -- although Oklahoma City has made a favorable impression on George, and ultimately hope to turn George with a deep playoff run. George has remained open-minded on a Thunder future, but there's a long way to go. Before the trade deadline, there are two answers that OKC GM Sam Presti probably won't get from George and his agent, Aaron Mintz: 1. Yes, I plan to re-sign. 2. No, I plan to leave. Which is exactly what Presti expected when the Thunder traded for George: This would be a season-long process, and there was always significant risk/reward in the trade that sent Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to Indiana.
Correct me if you know something I don't. http://www.spotrac.com/nba/houston-rockets/chris-paul-2609/ Maybe I do not understand the cap, but it says he is being a UFA next year and will not be on the books.
There is a cap hold on any player you have Bird Rights to. You can check out next year's cap holds here http://www.spotrac.com/nba/houston-rockets/cap/2018/
I can bet that if we won the championship this year and LeBron joined us in the offseason, we would open our collective arms to embrace him. And we wouldn't care if he aired a one-hour special of "Decision" to announce he's gonna take his talent to H-town.
A cap hold is the amount of space a free agent counts towards a team's cap. that website shows his cap hold (39 mil)...CP3 will be a UFA next year, but his cap hold (that 39 mil) will still be on our books unless we renounce it...if we renounce it then we’ll lose his Bird Rights and ability to go over the cap
We doesn't include me. I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I wouldn't be happy if this happened. It's also different when you're gathering talent to try and match an already loaded team. Of course fans want to win, or they wouldn't be called fans. So adding as much talent as possible is great in many people's eyes. To me, it's more than just the W or L. It's about how you win. Some of my favorite teams were not high on the talent level, but had great chemisty and likeable guys. That's why guys like Chuck Hayes have such a large fanbases.
I am with you in this. The "we" I used referred to the community of Rockets fans represented here. I am pretty sure if we had a poll, most posters would embrace what I described in my post.
Perhaps. Perhaps not. I'm sure many might say they feel the same way I do, but would not-so-quietly jump at the idea to obtain a LeBron. Hell, I might even change my tune if it actually happened, but in an ideal world, on an ideal team, I want it to be built the right way. I respect and envy teams that build the core of the team via draft or trade (rather than mass free agent signings). I understand Warriors fans were in the pits for so many years, so of course they're going to jump at the chance to build a super-team, but we haven't ever really been consistently bad like them. I'm also one of those that doesn't like tanking, even for a game.
