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

No work ethic. Not sure how he got back in shape and back to being a top 15 player without any work ethic

 

He is too fat to play. The Rockets did not win it all when he was here so he is worthless.

 

The strip club in Philly ain't hitting the same for the beard

 

I don't know. It just makes no sense. I mean, the Rockets are the laughing stock around the league. Why would any star player willingly come, especially a guy whose chances of winning a championship is winding down.

There are only two scenarios I can think of that would make sense for Harden.
1. He has lined up another star to join him in Houston.
2. He doesn't really care about winning anymore, and just wants to get his last big contract, chill, and enjoy the strip clubs here.

 

I dunno why you guys think Harden needs any leverage against Philly. Morey would give him a 4 year max deal right now if he'd sign it and so would the 28 other teams in the league not named the Houston Rockets. He's still a top 10-15 player in the league.

I don't think Draymond gets max money, His player option for next season is ~$25.m, I think you could get him to sign a deal for 4 / $110
Harden costs you $46.9m the rest of the current roster is $57.75m.
The #1 overall pick will cost $11,979,960
Which leaves you $17.37m below the cap of $134m.
Ship out Tate for no returning salary and you are right at $24m in free space to offer Draymond that 4 year deal after which you still have the full NT-MLE of $11.4m left to spend and are below the tax line by about $5M.


After those moves are made, it's all about the trade market and what you might get in return for your young pieces like Green and his $9.81m contract which they could take back 125% of or $12.36m.

That fat new contract that KPJ signed with the $18.24m cap hit translates to $22.9m in incoming salary if he's shipped out.

Lots of options for Stone ....

 

Draymond might not get quite the max, but he might get closer than you think. The league has become very bifurcated in recent years. Either you're a middling bench player and you get vastly underpaid, like vet minimum or MLE type salaries, or you're a starting-caliber player and you get get anywhere from like 60 to 100% of the max. This is the inevitable consequence of the salary cap setup they created when combined with the huge importance of any player who is on the court for 30+ minutes per game. In trying to create a level playing field, they've created a circumstance where most players either get underpaid or overpaid relative to their talent level.

 

i think most teams would give Harden a 1 or 2 or maybe even 3 year max deal... i'm bettin this is his final money grab - and he wants it all! He's looking to do a Brady - guaranteed money for years into retirement... this narcissistic fk doesnt care if he cripples a team going forward (see how he was willing to drive down our return when he wanted to get traded...). He's lookin for that uber max deal for 4 or 5 years...
The dudes rep was crap after demanding trades in consecutive years - he had to work that 'brand image'... thats why he left money on the table last negotiation, he was willing to bite the bullet for 1 year - that aint happening this go around...
At 33 now... whoever gives Harden that max deal will regret it for years to come... imo

 

THAT's the scenario that I really find alarming... lol
I think dude is gonna sign a final fat multi year contract... and then we're gonna see his take on 'Magic Johnson - the later years' lol... he's gonna get all rolly polly and have ongoing hamstring issues... etc...
He's 33 now... how many years do people think he has before he hits that hard decline? and how many post decline years do u wanna still be shoveling him max money?

and that's not even going into the whole breakdown of we're spending 3 years in hell to acquire top draft pix... u really wanna throw Harden's narcissistic butt into the locker room? We already missed the boat on doing a proper cultural overhaul during our 'rebuild' - we really wanna tie it all to a max contract 34 yo, 35 yo, 36 yo, 37 yo Harden?

lmao... in his prime... yeh, we dealt with Hardens megalomania... folks wanna give back end of his career Harden max money and let him back in the door...after tanking for a buncha youngsters?

yeh... good luck with that... lol

 

Is a whisper circle like a really quiet circle jerk?

@Jontro

 

If Bill Simmons is involved, then yes

 

Right now, I 100% agree. Particular regarding the leverage thing.

BUT...I think things can change quickly...

If Harden's season comes to an end with a fizzle in the playoffs and he maybe doesn't have his best foot forward, the feelings about his value could change again...

 

If you listen to the legitimate Philadelphia 76ers podcasts with people in the know like beat writers are now mentioning their concerns that Harden leaving and what’ is the 76ers options and plan B if he were to leave. It’s certainly a shift in narrative

 

If you listen to the legitimate Philadelphia 76ers podcasts with people in the know like beat writers are now mentioning the concerns that Harden leaving are real and what’ is the 76ers options if he were to leave. It’s certainly a shift in narrative

 

Philly strip clubs must be trash.

 

i mean… i would like to think so. in my circle jerk group, we sometimes whisper in each other’s ears for extra support

 

The Sixers are literally screwd if he leaves. They are so far over the cap that even if harden to walk they still will have no room to sign any remotely close to him. They would literally have to trade Harris, Picks and hope they get an albatross deal like Beal who isn’t close to Harden.


Yes harden has a lot of leverage.

 

If he leaves Philly, he'll be a Laker. He won't pass that up and he's a perfect fit with AD and Lebron.

So how does he convince the Sixers to take the Lakers garbage? Well he has to be able to threaten to walk for nothing while still making the max and that's where we come in. If the playoffs end poorly, Harden is going to tell Morey that the Sixers are better off signing and trading him to the Lakers for D'Angelo Russell than to see Harden sign outright with the Rockets. I don't think Morey is going to buy this bluff to be honest but I believe that's what they're attempting.

Oh and btw for those saying Morey will give him the max easily, that's not true. There's plenty of pressure on Morey from Elton Brand and ownership because he has brought in his boy Harden as well as all their friends. I'm sure they're microscopically watching him. Everyone knows that if it didn't work at age 33 and they have no way to make a major upgrade then it's crazy to give Harden the full 4 year max at age 34.

These guys are friends but they are also both shrewd businessmen. I do think it's douchey for Harden's agent to be planting these stories right before the most important playoffs in the Embiid era.

Frankly I hope he wins the title with Philly and with that experience he comes back here to be the final piece on a championship-calibre Rockets team.

 

Don’t the lakers have plenty of cap room this offseason?. Russell and Beasley come off the books at seasons end. Only two significant deals they have beyond next season are AD and Lebron. I do agree the lakers are a good situation but I think the only team he would leave the Sixers for would be to retire to Houston.

He loves it here and his family and business empire is situated here. I think the move would be idealistic for personal reasons at this point Otherwise he would just re-sign in Philadelphia!

 

Agree with a lot of this but you got one part wrong. Rockets would be operating as a cap space team so they don’t get to use the NT-MLE (that’s reserved for teams operating over the cap entering the FA period). Rockets can use the 5m/yr room exception though.

Draymond is a bad fit for the second FA slot IMO. He’s been notably terrible with young teammates, only really tries hard in the playoffs, and severely limits your choice of offensive systems.

I’d go for one of the RFA’s (Cam or Grant Williams), or alternatively some combo of Harrison Barnes / Malik Beasley / Bruce Brown. This team needs actual shooters who can also play a role in a competent defense.