Lol. I'll be the first to make fun of MBA programs. But it's like going to school with two Stephen A Smiths and two Max Kellermans in all of your classes. Utah is a terrible state for sports talk because the Jazz are the only ticket in town so people don't watch other teams or other sports -- and then they consider themselves expert sports analysts! Whenever people wanted to rile me up about Harden and Paul I wasn't having it. "Time will tell.. ." Time has told.
I am not surprised people thought it wasn't a good trade. It was a shocker for sure. But I (and I think many others in Houston) understood that Harden really has wanted another playmaker for some time now and isn't the ball hog he is made out to be. I was concerned that Paul was past his prime - and it does look like he is truth be told. But he is still great. My concern was that Paul wasn't going to be enough. Little did I know how good Tucker and Moute would turn out.
Ha! I remember that one! It should be remembered that John Salley said it was a dream come true. I bet before the show they were asked what kind of hot take they were going to have and John was like, "No way I'm taking the anti-Rockets side. You can have it. I'm an NBA expert and you'd be jobless right now if you were even slightly smarter. You take the anti-Rockets side of this one."
All of their takes are disposable and they open their mouths cause the 24/7 cycle demands so much content and more importantly they have to try and keep people listening.
"Remember guys, the Rockets had to blow up their bench in the CP trade! Now have a bunch of NBDL players." How is that bench now, Jason?
The fact that Kenny is a PG and couldn't see how CP and Harden as PGs could co-exist is head shaking.
For someone who's only been on TV for like 5 months, Paul Pierce sure has made an ass out of himself in short order. It's impressive how many garbage takes he's been able to spew out in such a little amount of time. Oh, the irony of someone named "The Truth" being so wrong about pretty much everything.
I'll admit, i wasnt a big fan of the trade... was kinda on the fence... I thought giving up Bev, Lou, Trez, Decker plus picks for CP3 was too much... but when you're able to then fill those additional roster spots with GG, JJ, etc... its a better deal than it looked on the surface... The remaining concern is after this season... is new contract/salary for a guy that is no spring chicken...lol Giving him the max deal that most presumed was coming (which is why we had to trade in the first place - for Bird rights) still has me concerned.. I never had an issue with how CP3 and Harden would mesh... but I had my concerns - as mentioned... I'm glad to see how things have worked out... I think CP3 has been pivotal to this teams focus and tenacity - and I applaud his leadership!
I thought the sky was the limit, but, like you, I also thought we gave up a lot to get CP. I didn't know exactly what CP had left in his tank, and it looks like he got enough to start WW III. I also thought that SAS would be a bigger threat w/ Kawhi, and that GSW could lock down good players in the off season. For me, putting us 3rd on the Western Conf wasn't good enough to trade away half our future. But we fell into some good fortunes when GSW and SAS blew their chances this season. Kawhi's injury fiasco, and the low-quality role players on the Warriors, made for a great rise of the Rockets this season.
Murray knows that superstars are almost impossible to get, while rotation guys are a dime a dozen. Even quality rotation guys are widely available during every off-season and at every trade deadline. Bev, Trez, and Dekker aren't difference-makers, and Lou doesn't really move the needle that much either. And Morty is better at finding good rotation guys that probably any other GM in the league. Maori was absolutely right in grabbing the star and worrying about filling out the roster later. The was a brilliant trade, regardless of how many bench guys we had to give up.
Obviously here in year 1 it looks to be a brilliant move - and hope that sentiment further resonates as time goes forward... but you also have to remember the Barkley trade where we gave up 'rotation guys' for an aging Barkley... so I saw the potential for similar results... so as i said, i was on the fence... Plus while 'quality rotation guys' are typically available every off season... thats where your Ryan Anderson and Corey Brewer type contracts come from that cause problems down the road... as opposed to the very reasonable deals that we shipped out... As I said, in retrospect, i'm glad the move was made - as much for CP3s on court contributions - as well as the great leader he has been.
You read my mind man After we beat Cleveland in 5 You have to Troll Michelle Beadle Bill Plashke Skip Bayless Stephen A Smith Kevin McHale Chris Broussard
