First James Harden made it clear he wants to be traded today with his responses, he gave the most diplomatic "I want to be traded" answer possible. Also nothing that Stone says is going to distress the asset of Harden. Everyone knows he wants to be dealt, it isn't a secret at all. Also both sides are not going to handle it privately........ Harden asked for a trade after the front office and staff was gutted... he didn't get traded so he went through the media stating he wants out (I assume it was him). Then the Rockets leak that they are in no hurry to trade him and he will be a Rocket for the next year most likely....... so then Harden responds by very publicly going to ATL and Vegas to defy the Rockets..... then the Rockets start leaking stories about how terrible Harden and Morey and MDA were and how the team is fixing the culture....... This has been something that has been handled in the media by both sides, but neither side has the balls to just come out and be direct...... I don't expect a 30 year old without an agent to not make mistakes.... I didn't expect a franchise worth billions of dollars to have such poor leadership all to protect their stupid ego.
Perhaps he has nothing positive to report about what's going on, in which case why should he say anything? The situation seems pretty clear. Harden wants out and the Rockets want something decent in return if they're going to trade him. What else do we need to know?
Yeah it would. I don't like empty answers but the reality in this situation is that the coach and to a lesser degree the players are the ones taking all the direct hits.... now even Harden has addressed the issue....... yet the GM and the President of the team still have said nothing and the GM at least hasn't spoken to the star player. Not having an agent has made this a lot more complicated as an agent usually is in the middle of this..... in a sense it has made it harder to communicate with Harden but it also has made it easier to win Harden back over because the agent isn't in the middle........ there is no reason that Stone can't have addressed the issue........ he didn't even address the John Wall trade.... I could somewhat get it if Silas was a long time head coach with tenure like Carlisle or Popovich.... but he isn't, Silas is a rookie head coach being asked questions.
I don't need to know anything, what I need is an executive that exercises leadership and addresses the questions so that it doesn't all fall on the head coach and players.
so you’ve never played hooky from work? Does James fo this every year? How many games has James missed? Oh it’s just principle right? You are expecting complete servility? I guess I see things in a more realistic view. He wanted to go to his buddies party. AT LEAST he went on record saying he would report “soon” - and everyone speculated a long holdout. 3 days later he was here. I do have an idea about Stone and Harden based on what the one party said publicly. I guess we wait for Stone to release his response if he ever decides that a public statement could start to bring some closure to this soap opera. Right now James isn’t totally happy, but the front office doesn’t seem to even want to initiate a dialogue.
I know it is a different sport but I remember it wasn't too long ago when Jon Gruden, the new Raiders head coach, was getting killed in the media because he hadn't spoken to Khalil Mack. At that point, there were rumors that Mack was unhappy and wanted out.
I'd expect the players and coaches to be asked the same questions about it, regardless. The GM can't really answer how much of a distraction this whole thing is for the coaches and players. That's a question for the coaches and players.
Ok, so lets do it your way. Have Stone come out and address the media about this whole Harden situation. What is the byproduct of that? Now teams know that you have a disgruntled player because you just admitted to it. You think Houston isn't getting any good offers now for Harden, think about what happens to all those offers when you come out and tell the whole world James wants out of Houston. How does that help us get better compensation for James? At least you can kinda work with what James gave the media today, "for now my focus is being here in Houston" to get teams to open up their offers for him just a little bit. Now if teams call us at least we can throw out the James wants to be here but we are willing to listen to any offer for any of our players spill.
It doesn't change Harden's valuation, every single team in the NBA already knows that Harden wants to be traded and most likely will eventually get nasty if he isn't traded....... the majority of the league is letting this all play out longer because they know the Rockets are ultimately going to have their backs against the wall if Harden escalates his behavior. The only think that will change Harden's availability in the league is if Harden either signs and extension OR he stops playing and is fined.... teams want to see if Harden will hold the Rockets feet to the coals.
Okay, so now we know what Harden was doing in Vegas. He was training. BTW, Stone should tweet that he needs to spend more time with his family and that's why he hasn't been available for questions.
Bro that is handling it privately lol. Everything you are saying is hearsay. Now I'm not saying that I don't believe Harden wants to be traded because I absolutely do believe Harden asked for a trade and has asked for a trade before. Of course the media is going to throw their agendas at the wall and wait until one sticks. That's what they get paid to do. And yes I do believe Harden has probably talked to several NBA teams and expressed to them that he wants out of Houston and would like to join their team. But I'm willing to bet that Harden has not expressed that interest with every NBA franchise. So maybe a team like Chicago who is not really sure what's going on with the James Harden and Rockets situation calls Houston with a decent offer that would drive the market value of James Harden up. IMO what has drove the market for James Harden down so much is my belief that Harden has probably had conversations with Miami, Nets, Philadelphia saying he would like to join them and they are trying to give Houston as little as possible since they know Harden only wants to play for certain teams.
Bro I respectfully disagree with you 100%. The market value for said asset is what the market is offering for said asset. It's the Rockets job to get the biggest haul they can if they do trade Harden, it's the other teams job to try to pay as little as possible to Houston for Harden's services. Houston can believe Harden is worth 6 first round draft picks, his value is strictly based on what teams are willing to pay, period point blank. And if things do get nasty I really believe that will be solely because of Harden and not the Rockets. Harden's best bet is to keep his trade value high so the Rockets can trade him.
LOL Pot meet kettle. You do realize that YOU are being referred to as a child in another thread, one that you started I might add. When DD questions your maturity you know things have really gone bad for you. I just can't help but chuckle at your appalling lack of self awareness. I know I shouldn't kick a man when he's down but you keep coming back for more.
Feel like the media session was a wasted opportunity to get more info. I feel like McMahon getting the first questions really set the tone for the rest... Really wish Feigen was the one setting the tone. Top questions that are "for the culture": Reports had come out that you and Wall had talked about playing together. What were those conversations like and how do you see you two playing together? What is the goal for this team right now at this moment? Can you see this team being a contender by the end of this season? Do you still feel like you're the leader of this team? With all the new faces around, what kind of culture do you want to build with your new teammates? More questions to test his ownership as "leader" role for the team. The question about Stone is revealing. Would like to see if Stone has reached out to Harden, or have they not spoken because Harden aint picking up? Also, Iko needs better Wifi. Someone hook him up.
It will only get nasty is Harden let’s get get nasty? You mean if the Rockets drag their heels and don’t trade Harden... like they don’t want to? Unless Harden has a change of heart (which is possible but not likely) he is not just going to keep playing and keep his mouth shut because there would be no incentive to trade Harden.
