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Bill Simmons: “In the whisper circles, everybody seems to think he’s going back to Houston.”

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by DaBeard, Mar 6, 2023.

  1. Corrosion

    Corrosion Member

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    Theoretically they can kick the can down the road one season and not affect their future.

    Can't kick the can two years because Green, Sengun, Christopher & Garuba would have cap holds at 250%-300% of their current salaries and that eats into the available space - they have to use it this offseason or next.


    But let's be honest, there's nothing in FA the next year that's a better option ...


    Prior to the idea of Harden, I thought about FVV & Tuner but FVV's been terrible all year ....and Turner extended with Indy.
    Harden & FVV would both get a 35% max .... Harden's only 4 years while FVV would be for 5 years, if he was anything like this year over that period, that's a terrible contract, much worse than Harden's over 4 years.

    Give me Harden & Harrison Barnes as FA and trade for another quality player. That's an instant playoff roster.
     
  2. DatRocketFan

    DatRocketFan Member

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    To me its harden, scoot or bust at pg.

    I'm not even sure scoot is that great since we can't guarantee the transition into the league will b smooth.

    Running it back with kpj next season as the main pg is just gonna repeat the previous 3 years results, regardless of how kpj stans hypes up his pg abilities unless we snag wemby and he performed to his draft hype.
     
    clos4life and AroundTheWorld like this.
  3. daywalker02

    daywalker02 Member

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  4. BreakYoSelfFool

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    I said I think that there are better much cheaper options for guys to train up the youth because people have said that Harden would help make our players better even if we don't become contenders.

    I agree Harden will probably be the best free agent available.

    You are wrong about the salary cap though. Hardens max deal would be 35% of the cap so if the cap was 200 mil he would make whichever is greater 70 mil 108% of his last year pay. The dollar amounts are estimated and not set until the cap is decided. Also J Green will probably cost 25% of the cap to resign which would be 50 mil. Maybe same for Alpe. And if one of them becomes all nba or DPOY in the next 3 years it could be more
     
  5. slothy420

    slothy420 Paper Street Soap Co.

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    I can't believe there are 27 pages of this.

    What's different now than when Harden forced his way out, except this team is much, much, much worse?

    The owner hasn't proven that he's willing to spend to build a quality team, the GM hasn't proven that he has what it takes, the coach not only hasn't proven that he can win - he hasn't even proven that he's not completely incompetent. But yeah, I'm sure Harden can't wait to get back to this circus.

    How appropriate that Bill Simmons initials are BS
     
    BamBam, cheke64, BallSoHarden and 2 others like this.
  6. larsv8

    larsv8 Contributing Member

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    Literally everything

    An aging roster, with no cap space, no draft picks, and no players who could theoretically get better with time.

    is now

    The youngest roster in the league, with tons of capspace, good future picks, and a bunch of guys who can get alot better.
     
    Rashmon, Y2JT, BamBam and 4 others like this.
  7. cmlmel77

    cmlmel77 Up all Night Watching Houston Sports

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    And a Harden who will have either won his chip or tried and failed with two different “super friends” teams and realized the grass isn’t always greener. If the sixers go out early, he has to realize they have no path to improvement.

    the worst scenario for those who want Harden is the Sixers come very close and barely miss the title. Then the logical answer is to tweak and run it back. A title or a blowout would make leaving logical.
     
    cbass likes this.
  8. Easy

    Easy Boban Only Fan
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    If Harden can't win with Embiid and Maxey, he's not going to win with a bunch of 20-year-olds. I've said it earlier. If Harden was really serious about signing with the Rockets, only one of two things would make sense. (1) Winning a championship is not his priority anymore. Or (2) he is colluding with another star (or stars) to form a superfriends team in Houston.

    If it is (2), expect most of the young talents we have accumulated in the past two years (along with Stephen Silas) to be gone next season. This will be a totally different team.
     
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  9. cmlmel77

    cmlmel77 Up all Night Watching Houston Sports

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    And a Harden who will have either won his chip or tried and failed with two different “super friends” teams and realized the grass isn’t always greener. If the sixers go out early, he has to realize they have no path to improvement.

    the worst scenario for those who want Harden is the Sixers come very close and barely miss the title. Then the logical answer is to tweak and run it back. A title or a blowout would make leaving logical.
    Number 1 is what I’m saying. If the Sixers don’t win or come extremely close, he would have tried twice with two super friend teams and failed twice. At his age, it would be perfectly normal to just enjoy life, hoop with some talented young guys, and have fun in his favorite city. Why keep banging your head against a wall when it failed twice?

    and yes that means he won’t be grinding every day trying to win a championship, which is a risk. He’ll probably get fat(ter). But we know he loves to hoop, so he won’t just mail it in, and he can manage the game and make life much easier for the young guys without top athleticism.

    (Also the guy obviously doesn’t love pressure. He’s not Kobe. Playing “old man mentor” might appeal more to him than forming another super team with high expectations.)
     
    clutchdabear and Easy like this.
  10. daywalker02

    daywalker02 Member

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    Harden isn't going to rapidly slow down, I agree.

    I think he would still score 18-19 ppg.
     
  11. Os Trigonum

    Os Trigonum Contributing Member
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    this thread is like a bunch of folks wishing beyond hope to reunite with their exes . . . :D
     
    kjayp, daywalker02 and Easy like this.
  12. Hemingway

    Hemingway Member

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    I think it is a distinct possibility that Harden returns. It’s certainly no a slam dunk, but certainly worth talking about. So much better conversation than the pit player 1 vs player 2 sh*t on this forum.
     
  13. riko

    riko Member

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    Chris Haynes and Marc Stein :there is more than enough credibility to the Harden rumours to Houston. There is a lot of chatter that there is life to this
     
  14. ThaRavenOfSanJack

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    Depends...Define "quiet" circle jerk.
     
  15. Reeko

    Reeko Member

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    yet another player who has mentioned how much they study James Harden

    now imagine Jalen Green getting to study his game and receive tutelage every single day up close and personal

    graduating summa cumlaude at James Harden University will have Jalen Green as 1 of the most devastating scorers in this league
     
    #535 Reeko, Mar 20, 2023
    Last edited: Mar 20, 2023
  16. OremLK

    OremLK Member

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    Not only that, but getting passes from Harden after he's sucked the defenders away and cleared out the lane. Pick your poison between one of the best guards to ever play the game and The Next Generation.
     
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  17. Ancient Moabite

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    Rockets and Harden reunion will be the new Bennifer(B Affleck/J Lo)
     
  18. Mathloom

    Mathloom Contributing Member

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    I really don't understand how people look at the FA market and say it sucks, then suggest giving a 4-year max to a 34 year old in that market in that very same season.

    It is totally irrelevant that Harden is the best FA available, please stop saying that. All 450 players are available in trade. There are some weird myths floating around. For example, the idea that we know who is available for the next 2 years is ABSURD. Who the F knew Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were going to be traded? Harden to Sixers? What about when Bucks acquired Holiday?

    You really think a 34 year old James Harden is going to be the best player acquired in a two year window? He won't even be in the top 3 lol.

    Guys we have max money with extra draft picks on our hands. With max money you can sign an FA or acquire someone easily in trade. Most of the players are available in TRADE just like any other time except we have more ammo than most right now. The fact that you can use your money to outright sign someone is a bonus, but you are not just hunting for FA's. You are simply hunting for a max player who is worth his contract and for some reason can be acquired. Trade targets come and go CONSTANTLY. You don't know who'll be available in 2 months much less 2 years.

    It is absurd to look at this situation and say "no **** it, let's sign Harden". We've endured a lot to be in this privileged position of sitting back and waiting for a great player to break loose. We tanked 3 hard seasons, we can endure waiting 2 seasons for a max-worthy player.

    Don't be insecure about what we can build just because you've been watching them when they're 19/20. Go watch some tape of SGA when he was 20 dude, calm yourself down. He was nothing but raw skills and look at him now. Think about all the possibilities on 30 teams. If the Sixers flame out in the 2nd round, Joel Embiid is not staying there. Jimmy Butler, Nikola Jokic, Jaylen Brown, Luka Doncic, Siakam, all of these guys imminent happiness requires a championship and they only give out one championship per season.

    The reason you can only see Harden as an option in your mind is because the roster is not ready. the FA's are CORRECT. We are not ready to have them, only the ones who have given up or over the hill would come to this situation. We have to use our core plus a couple of acquisitions (vet defensive anchor, vet PG). What OKC is doing right now this instant is renting out its cap space until it makes itself attractive enough to a real max-worthy FA or trade target. That's something we can learn from them.

    Don't blow your load early again. We should already be a youthful 30-40 win team when we pitch top FA's and trade targets. Get a grown up to run the offense and a grown up to anchor the defense. Everything else, our core can do.

    It's going to be funny revisiting these posts and seeing just how many people couldn't see what was obvious. If those same people were OKC fans last season, they would have been whining about that too until the media allowed them to feel worthy. Those are NOT the kind people who were thinking "OKC is looking like they're about to have a 30-40 win season".

    We are better than a 34 year old Harden right now. If we want Harden, let's pick him up next summer it will be so much cheaper and there's a decent chance we'll find someone max-worthy first so then Harden becomes the final piece when he comes home. There is no rational argument for us being the team that signs James Harden to the max this summer.
     
  19. larsv8

    larsv8 Contributing Member

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    You are saying alot without saying anything. I literally read it four times, and it isn't coherent.

    Signing Harden doesn't prevent trading for anyone.

    If you have a specific alternative path, please share.

    At this point, Harden remains the best path forward and it is absolutely 100% rational.
     
  20. RocketsDraftTV

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    Appreciate the effort, the problem is if tilman wants harden here and harden wants to be here. Then harden will be a rocket, and from the reports it appears harden and tilman are still close
     

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