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

Definitely hope we're not paying him the max

 

Harden has been incredible this season. Someone is giving him the max.

 

She's still riding the Watson hate train.....

 

This is what some ppl don’t get. There will be no shortage of teams offering to sign Harden for the max, Rockets included.

 

I dont think we should sign him and I dont think he should be here. Bad for both sides.

 

From a strictly fit standpoint Harden is literally the perfect player for this group. Manages the offense as an elite PG, can stretch the floor off ball, and would allow Green to defend the smallest player on the court so he doesn't get bullied.

But does that outweigh tying up all our money in a 34 year old when we are likely a 2 years away (at best) from legit being able to contend. The dreamer in me would think that if Harden was coming here we might be able to trade for another impact player to join him with our overflowing collection of assets.

Hard for me to say it's a great idea given the age risk, but I can see the worth in trying it in a league where building a real contender is absurdly hard to do. If nothing else I think Harden the PG would work wonders for the offensive confidence of our young players.

 

So who do we sign then?

 

I’d put Jabari on the bench for Tari before KPJ out of respect and who actually deserves to start

I’d let KPJ have a chance at SF just from his catch & shoot abilities. Harden would unlock that like no body business

KPJ already plays a lot of minutes. I’d start him as SF but have him run the second unit for a minute while harden & Green sit

If Tari has to start Jabari deserves to get bench. Not the best ball handler and shooter on the team. Harden needs shooters around him. Not some sophomore wild defensive guy with a unreliable 3pt shot who can barely finish around the rim like Tari

I like Tari but he doesn’t deserve to start if Harden comes back. I’d put KPJ as the starting SF until it shown he can defend the position or you show me a better player to start over him

 

The issue isn't about him making the max next season or even the one after that, it's him making the max at 36 or 37. He's already a legendary quitter who is known to show up out of shape....there's reason to think he won't age that well.

Now if you're the Rockets and you land Wemby, you might as well give it a shot, you have the cap room and nothing better to do with it, but there's significant risk that goes with it.

Also, he can't get a proper 5 year deal with Philly, so basically when taxes are taken into consideration, he can't make more there than he could here.

I think the reason he'd choose to come back would be for the soft media market who will fawn over him if the Rockets even make the playoffs vs in Philly where he'll be torn to shreds if they don't win the whole thing.

 

This has the feel of being controlled leaks from Harden's agent to drum up leverage in the contract negotiation with Philly. A Rockets' reunion makes little sense for either Harden or the Rockets.

 

If you had KPJ, Green, and Harden on the court together, Harden would be defending the 3 anyway most of the time. You'd then try to hide Green on whoever was the worst guard on the court.

 

What leverage could he get?

The 76ers can't offer him a proper 5 year max even if they wanted to due to the over-38 rule, so he's looking at essentially the same 4 year deal with Houston or with Philly.

 

I don’t believe he needs leverage. Everyone knows how Morey feels about Harden and he’s also their best bet to stay relevant given their roster makeup.

 

It is the WWE I mean NBA.

 

The chance that James Harden or anyone remotely close to James Harden would ever tell Bill Honky Simmons anything about his future plans? ZERO and less than zero if possible.

I am sure that Rockets ownership would want Harden back, so they can claim Harden wants to come home - and fail to see that it is possibly a big money grab.

Also, the idea that the Sixers would not want Harden back is odd to me. He plays very well with Embiid and is still getting 22/11/7/1 from Harden while he is shooting 50% on 2's, 40% on 3's and 88% from the line. His EFG% is an exceptional 59% from the floor and he has a 3:1 assist to turnover ratio, while leading the league in assists and has the highest OFF rating of his career. Hell, his VORP is almost identical to Joel Embiid.

Harden is quietly having an awesome year and has been getting better as the season has progressed.

The Sixers will collapse if they let Harden go, because Embiid will demand a trade......

Why would Harden want to come to the worst team in the league, other than to get the Sixers to cough up the full max?

Harden is playing himself, at age 33, into getting the full max, because he has quietly been so good this year.

 

How would it be a "big money grab"?

Rockets can offer 4/201
76ers can offer 4/210

 

There is no way for this story have this much smoke for this to not have a legitimate reason on why he wants to leave philly and I feel @Nook might have a inside reason why.

 

This.

A Harden/Green backcourt defensively is a disaster, and that doesn't even include Sengun struggling in some matchups.

Harden is a solid defender when he has a good defensive point guard next to him - but he can no longer cover elite point guards defensively.

Green is very talented, but he isn't really a good defender at this point and already has some strength/size issues.

The Rockets could draft Victor - and Victor could lead the league in blocks and opponent field goal percentage in the paint - and the Rockets would still not win with the perimeter defense of Harden and Green, teams would just shoot 3's and pass outs to beat the Rockets.

I have heard some say that Harden would fit well with Scoot and Green, and I disagree. Green is best defending point guards, and Henderson is strong but too short to guard bigger players. Harden would have to defend the 3 or 4, but the Rockets have a couple guys at the 3 and you don't want Harden defending 4's with Sengun next to him.

Harden is still an elite player - he has learned to stop scoring but become arguably the best passer in the NBA - however he still needs to run the offense....... Henderson is the same way, he needs the ball in his hands too. So the fit with Houston and Harden is poor on the court.

I find it funny that people are concerned about the fit with KPJ, if the Rockets get Henderson, it is only a matter of time before Porter is gone. Henderson is not going to tolerate the loafing KPJ does and he isn't going to be bullied either. KPJ would go Rickey Davis and go bye bye.

 

Have the Sixers offered 4/210?

 

I haven't heard a whole lot directly stating Harden IS leaving Philly, but I also haven't heard a lot saying that Harden isn't interested in the Rockets.

Having said that, this smells like a leverage play to me.

Harden is 33 years old and that is an age where teams get scared offering max money.

My "guess" is that he wants the max from the Sixers and he hasn't received that offer yet.

So Harden, spills that he would go back to Houston for the max if the Sixers don't give it to him.

The reality is that Harden wants to win a title, and the Rockets do not offer that opportunity to do that, no matter how much he likes the city of Houston and the fans.

Having said that, we will have to wait and see.