Harden and Melo are completely different players. Harden has said before that he would rather put up 19 and 10 than 25 and 6. He dominates the ball because he's the only one that can create ANYTHING off the dribble. (Also he meshed well with Westbrook and Durant in OKC, yes INCLUDING when all three of them were together.) Melo is an upgrade at the 4 offensively and defensively. Check out Melo's performance as a spot up 4 during the '12 Olympics. He'd be perfect in our system, and he can also get his own shot when he needs to. On the other side of the ball he might be slightly below average, but considering the abomination that T-Jones is on defense, it literally CAN'T get worse. They are compatible. Stop this madness.
Yes. Melos playoff record is amazing... Oh that's right his playoff record is worse than anyone not name Tracy McGrady. Melo is not an upgrade over harden.
I didn't point to on court compatibility as the problem, if you're referring to me. I'd just rather have players who are finished products around Dwight... My first suggestion was a lot more serious than my second, hence the wink.
I don't even like Melo that much, but OP is right... if you can get Melo just by dumping Asik/Lin contracts, you gotta do it. Trade some other guys for defensive specialists if you have to. Harden/Melo/Dwight big three is probably the best offense in the NBA.
Oh, so you were only pretending to make a terribly dumb post for laughs. Was this one the same: Because I guess it is funny, in a way. Harden's last two years in the playoffs: 27/6/5 on 53%TS in the West Melo's last two years in the playoffs: 29/7/2 on 50%TS in the East Hilarious.
The OP is exactly right. That is not true for Melo. He isn't a great defender, but he is about average. More than anything, together they would (at the least) lose the excuse of having to expend all their energy on offense with the other more than capable of taking over for stretches and easing the burden. Same is true for CP.
This will never happen, and it disgusts me that you'd even consider giving up Harden for an aging, one-dimensional Melo.He's incredibly talented, but you know exactly what you're getting. You already know his maximum level of potential. Harden hasn't even peaked. He's younger and can do more than just score. Melo is at the point in his career where he's not interested in passing the ball. He is what he is. With James,there is room to grow. I was gonna post what I really wanted to post until read this fuggery. lol
^This. When we first got Harden, I thought he could develop into an Oscar Robertson-lite type player. With a team that has Dwight and Melo, he's able to use and further develop his play-making skills and not carry so much of the scoring load. This in turn should improve his ability to exert himself on defense. Where's he's catching hell. I never liked Melo, but I think he's probably realizing that not winning a championship is going to haunt him more than the scoring titles won and millions earned.
You don't trade away a 24 year old superstar, regardless of his flaws. Period. According to cyberx, trading Harden isn't even close to being on the table for Morey and co. Not happening. Not in a million years.
He also said he was going to work on his defense seriously last off-season... and answers "it happens" and get's into childish arguments with a reporter when probe about his lack of effort... In short, we should all take what Harden says with a grain of salt, and focus on what he actually does.. Harden meshed well with Durant and Westbrook as a sixth man... but, considering his behavior as a Rocket, such as ignoring a coach's call to eliminate us from the playoffs, blaming teammates and not himself after losses where he played poorly... Not taking a game 5 potential elimination game seriously, instead halfheartedly floating about the court on defense and chucking up shots haphazardly... I'd say Harden's gotten a little too cozy with the "superstar" label that's been cast upon him by the fans and the media... to genuinely be okay with playing third fiddle to Melo and Howard... Has everyone forgotten how crappy he seems to play when Howard is successfully taking over... Now, everyone's under the belief that he'll play much better with Melo now taking a turn at being the "go-to" player on the team...? With a team of Howard, Harden, Melo and McHale... Melo's going to be the alpha... Everyone here is okay with that...? Since when is Melo known for his leadership skills...?
Melo is just as good, if not a better individual defender than TJones.... TJones is a better shot blocker/help defender, but 1 on 1 Melo has him beat. Look at any of the advanced defensive statistics, and also realize that Melo was playing on a crappy NY team, while TJones was playing next to D12.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...-harden-houston-rockets-hot-team-nba/5816795/ Remember this report???
I totally agree with your logic, but I still don't think we should get Melo. One, I don't think he's worth a max contract -- his teams always underperform. Two, I think he's such a team killer that I wouldn't want him even on a cheap contract. Three, sure you can always flip him later to some other GM that does want him, but there is a transaction cost in thr whole thing -- it'll eat up a whole season, maybe two, to flip him when Howard doesn't have a ton of seasons to waste. Meanwhile the whole affair takes a toll on the rest of the roster of guys who will be sticking around. So, sure there's value to be had there, but it's not free and the price is the most precious commodity around, time. I don't think it's worth it.
The younger, cheaper 1st Team All NBA player is almost always preferable to the older, more expensive player.
When I first heard the buzz about Melo to Houston, I was skeptical. But It's starting to grow on me, and the potential of Harden/Melo/Howard is definitely intriguing. I agree with the whole 'acquire now, worry later' thought process because he is a super talented scorer worth the max in my opinion. Not to mention, he's gotta be tired of losing. Even the biggest money oriented competitors eventually feel that hunger to win after losing so many times, and that could be the case with Melo. He adds experience in this league to the team, an asset that cannot go overlooked with all the youth we have. I say if there's a shot, go for it.
Guys, I already pointed out I want really serious about a straight swap.... We'd have to get more than Melo and only if the cap space cleared went to another start.. But that's not really an option this off season Harden has played with 1 or more stars every year except last season, where he played the team he's most familiar with....I doubt Melo's efficiency would go down, if he had the same circumstances..
To your individual points: 1) You don't think he's worth the max. I get that some might not, but all that matters is whether a handful of GM's with assets to buy with do. The value of Melo's max contract is determined entirely and solely by GM's and Owners. At $22,000,000, yeah I get where you're coming from, but our own opinions mean nothing regarding the real value of these contracts. 2) You think he's a team killer. I don't think that's quite fair. He pushed his way out of Denver, that's on him. But NYK was stupid enough to play that dance and give up as much as they did. PLUS give Stoud that contract. Melo didn't kill that team, it was setup to suck by stupid FO management. 3) It'd still take time to flip him if it didn't work out. True time is part of the value equation. But I'm not sure the time cost of doing business going the Melo route is any more expensive than the alternative at this point either. What are the alternatives? Wait for a better fit to shake loose? Waiting in and of itself takes time as well. Or if you opt to acquire better "fit" players like Milsap or Lowry (of which I am proponents of both), you also still spend time to determine if the combination can be successful plus you expend more assets getting lessor players. So I agree time is a currency that we have limited amounts of with Howard, I don't think we're spending more of that currency going after Melo than we would any other option. Melo is the BPA now with the lowest amount of assets required to obtain him. He is in essence the path of least resistance.
