I think we can safely assume that over the course of the nxt 3-5yrs Harden will keep us relevant and in the mix playoff wise, but I think it's also safe to assume that his reliance on the refs and his lack of competitive fire will not lead us to a title. So...do we take a chance and see what we can get for him on the trade market or are we satisfied just making the playoffs over the nxt few years?
It depends on where Harden's game goes next and who we put next to him. Anyone with half a brain can see that: - Harden is still getting better - Harden will be more transitioned into his new role and offense - Harden needs help when he has his occasional off games With a Hayward, PG, or Milsap type player, we make a run, period.
You made peace with it. How sweet. I'm sure Les is thrilled to hear it. I still haven't made peace with the Oilers epic collapse against the Bills. And I don't think I'll ever come to peace with the shameful performance by Harden and the Rockets in that last game. I'm sure Harden has probably made peace with it too. Drowning his humiliation in booze and strippers.
Not just directing to this post. I've been seeing this claim all over the place. What "new role"? What part of Harden's game has changed this season as opposed to the past years, apart from having more shooters around him? What are the things he was not asked to do before this season that he is doing now? The so-called "transition" was supposed to be an adjustment of the roster and offense that everybody has been calling for, not an adjustment to how Harden plays the game. It is supposed to enhance Harden's strengths, not sacrifice them. He is not asked to do anything different other than giving him more weapons. (And the result seems to be great--in the regular season, anyway. I'm not complaining.) Why is it often presented as a reason for him to not perform to his maximum?
the future is bright with regular season success and dark with playoff failures. this is harden's last prime years btw, he wont be getting faster.
It takes time to figure out how to balance facilitating vs scoring. Harden has to learn (and currently do better) in determining when he needs to get himself going and when he should try to get his teammates going. He also needed to learn where his teammates will be under the new offensive system. Yes it's a system designed to maximize his strengths, but he has to still learn it and adjust to it from the lack of system we previously had. Just my 2 cents.
Over it but Hardens performance will never be forgotten. He knows he dictates the tempo and he stopped. By the way, we started the season 31-9 and after the all star break it was 24-18 so we were pretty much okc. Gordan started the year with 18ppg and shot 41? After the all star break he dropped 4 points and shot 33%.
Who should I believe? An active NBA player with access to other active NBA players saying guys want to play with Harden? Or guys posting from their couches saying he's a bum and no one will want to come here because of it? Tough call, tbh.
Such a tough call . . . .. . . .I will have to marinate on it . I think there was some failings in the system and the players I think the failures of the game were system wide. . . . I think D'Antoni was simply outcoached and did not motivate our players I think Harden may have quit but definitely was in a funk of some sort I think Our role players (outside of Capela and Dekker) seems to have a off night -- Actually I am INCREDIBLY Disappointed in our MID THREE - Anderson, Williams and Gordon for the series I can honestly say I did not look at the numbers but The MID THREE seemed to have subpar series in general When Three of your main cogs don't bring it. . then your Star has an off night or even moments - it means losses Rocket River
D'antonio just flat out got out coached ... Now pop is the goat , but Mikey didn't even come close . On top of that like you said , our role players struggled . Lou was perhaps the biggest positive difference maker vs OKC ,but vs SA he fell flat on his face .... I mean looked terrible. Anderson couldn't hit a shot , and Gordon (bless his heart) is not a playmaker for others . Our entire offense the entire series depended on James . It's what we were making fun of OKC for , we became a one man show . That's on our role players , that's on the coach , and yes that's on James . To lose the way we did game 6 was a true team effort of suckitude. Im pessimistic by nature , but I don't doubt for a second that James will continue to be a great player and can still improve. However , I am not optimistic that we can add another star ( through some fault of moreys but also just luck ) . Morey has a lot of work to do this offseason I'm terms of balancing talent acquisitions to fit . We rolled with shooters and it turns out our shooters were not good enough . In my opinion the best bet is continued growth from Clint Dekker and Harrell . It would please me to no end of those 3 could become our starting front court next year (with the implication that they are better than Ariza and Ryan ) ... Not only is the athleticism upgraded , but also that puts two deadly veterans on our bench .
U dont have to believe anyone... look at actual results... We had to pony up 80M to get Ryan Anderson to come to town and 53M for Eric Gordon... while Durant went to GS, Bogut went with Cleve on the cheap, Bazemore chose Atl.... you can draw your own conclusions from all that... Then we can watch how this seasons free agency pans out... I can see how MDA's system can be appealing to lower to midlevel FA's as it helps drive their stats while Harden draws the majority of attention - esp FAs on a short term contract where someone is looking to inflate their stats before signing their next (hopefully more) lucrative contract.... otoh I can see upper level free agents being wary depending on what 'guarantees' they can get regarding involvement/role... like I said... we'll see how the offseason goes...
"Upper level" FAs are nearly impossible for any team to get, except for the one off I-880 in Oakland. I personally have a hard time thinking of a truly upper echelon player who (1) can be pried from his team this summer, and (2) is a good fit for us. There's Hayward, but I don't see him coming here over staying in Utah or heading to Boston -- however, my feeling doesn't have anything to do with our postseason flameout. I never saw him coming here. Idk. I think the odds of winning a championship without just one all-star are slim to none, but I'm not sure I see the path to getting another one. Maybe July will surprise me somehow.
Well , for sure at least he needs one of them. Personally I would be OK if we just gave harden an Amare and Marion . They put up 20-10 seasons without needing to volume shoot 3's.
Honestly. . . my biggest fear is that we will GIVE UP on our young players too early Honestly. . . . I would love to have Patterson on this team I think he would have made a bigger impact than Anderson in some points this playoffs I mean . . they are not deal breakers but I WOULD REALLY like to see Dekker and Trez get more burn before we trade them Rocket River
If the past is any indication, Morey is likely going to trade most of the young players before their rookie contracts expire. I think Morey believes that getting a proven veteran is to be preferred over waiting for a young player to develop. He can sell potential for a lot of good stuff. And potential doesn't always pan out. So let other people worry about the uncertainty of developing potential.
