Washington Wizards said to have turned down trade for James Harden
The Washington Wizards turned down a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder for James Harden this summer because team owner Ted Leonsis was unwilling to commit to what would have been a roughly $80 million, five-year contract for the high-scoring player, according to multiple people with knowledge of the proposed deal.
The Wizards, who before the trade proposal came up had acquired three expensive veteran players, also likely would have been subject to an NBA luxury tax penalty for having a total payroll over the prescribed threshold if they had signed Harden.
And there you have it. While I never imagined Okafor and Ariza would have been collectively as crappy on the court, I -- and most here -- were pained by the opportunity cost, which is now being reported to be James Harden, age 23.
Without the deal, the Wizards would have gone into this coming summer with Harden, Wall, Nene, near max cap space, Seraphin, Vesely, Booker, and Crawford.
And now Kevin Love, age 24, is publicly battling with management in Minnesota. With Harden in place, I firmly believe we could have been in the mix for him.
F*ck this organization.
