Harden-watch 2020

[MarxyLebronist]

1. Blame the Rockets owner for current Rockets culture/professionalism issues and COVID management. Vets like Tucker and stars like Westbrook, Harden are done with it. Wall and Cousins are a nice story and they have something to prove- ideal pairing for this lost year in HOU. But there were tons of fans with no masks on in the stands at their preseason games. It's just a mess there.

2. The on-court is what Harden seems more dangerous to: No D, iso shot hogging, etc. Are the Nets strong enough now to mitigate that? Well, it appears that they have a plan in place that makes the worst of HOU unacceptable, and they have two mega stars who are walking the walk so far at least. If there is one strong argument for not being at all worried about Harden, it's D'Antoni.

3. Danny Green's contract can be traded tomorrow, as I understand it. So perhaps we'll get some clarity around the league on this sooner than later.

[Keith Van Horn]

I mean, many fans here probably viewed Kyrie as a malcontent until he got here and played for us. And we saw what it was like for him to be happy to be on a team that wanted him, and to see him want to be on this team. I see a similarity here with Harden.

Also, it's been 1 game. Against a pretty putrid Warriors team at that. Yes, everything went perfectly.

But what happens when we get punched in the face by a team that also has an amazing rotation? what happens when Kyrie and Levert go on a shooting slump? What happens if they end up load managing KD at some point, or an injury surfaces on the team that hurts our depth?

I'll tell you what -- the conversation is going to be that we still need a third star. And we're gonna be upset at the fact that we didn't make a move on Harden when the window was there. And what happens if at the time Harden is on an insane scoring streak? wins player of the week honors in back to back weeks?

I think if the move for Harden is there in the upcoming days/weeks, you just HAVE to make a move. The talent is just too tremendous. The ceiling for this team at that point will be absurd.

But I do think it still comes with a caveat -- I still think if there's a way to keep Levert, I'd love to keep him. I think he's perfect for this role. Maybe Dinwiddie, Allen, Prince, 2-3 1sts...?

[MrDollarBills]

I mean, many fans here probably viewed Kyrie as a malcontent until he got here and played for us. And we saw what it was like for him to be happy to be on a team that wanted him, and to see him want to be on this team. I see a similarity here with Harden.

Also, it's been 1 game. Against a pretty putrid Warriors team at that. Yes, everything went perfectly.

But what happens when we get punched in the face by a team that also has an amazing rotation? what happens when Kyrie and Levert go on a shooting slump? What happens if they end up load managing KD at some point, or an injury surfaces on the team that hurts our depth?

I'll tell you what -- the conversation is going to be that we still need a third star. And we're gonna be upset at the fact that we didn't make a move on Harden when the window was there. And what happens if at the time Harden is on an insane scoring streak? wins player of the week honors in back to back weeks?

I think if the move for Harden is there in the upcoming days/weeks, you just HAVE to make a move. The talent is just too tremendous. The ceiling for this team at that point will be absurd.

But I do think it still comes with a caveat -- I still think if there's a way to keep Levert, I'd love to keep him. I think he's perfect for this role. Maybe Dinwiddie, Allen, Prince, 2-3 1sts...?

Do the Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Heat etc need a third star? Why is it always us? No one is saying this about any of the other top teams.

Also, Kyrie's behavior in Boston versus Harden's behavior right now. Let's compare notes, and see why people are a bit hesitant about Harden as opposed to Kyrie being welcomed with open arms.

[Keith Van Horn]

I mean, many fans here probably viewed Kyrie as a malcontent until he got here and played for us. And we saw what it was like for him to be happy to be on a team that wanted him, and to see him want to be on this team. I see a similarity here with Harden.

Also, it's been 1 game. Against a pretty putrid Warriors team at that. Yes, everything went perfectly.

But what happens when we get punched in the face by a team that also has an amazing rotation? what happens when Kyrie and Levert go on a shooting slump? What happens if they end up load managing KD at some point, or an injury surfaces on the team that hurts our depth?

I'll tell you what -- the conversation is going to be that we still need a third star. And we're gonna be upset at the fact that we didn't make a move on Harden when the window was there. And what happens if at the time Harden is on an insane scoring streak? wins player of the week honors in back to back weeks?

I think if the move for Harden is there in the upcoming days/weeks, you just HAVE to make a move. The talent is just too tremendous. The ceiling for this team at that point will be absurd.

But I do think it still comes with a caveat -- I still think if there's a way to keep Levert, I'd love to keep him. I think he's perfect for this role. Maybe Dinwiddie, Allen, Prince, 2-3 1sts...?

Do the Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Heat etc need a third star? Why is it always us? No one is saying this about any of the other top teams.

Also, Kyrie's behavior in Boston versus Harden's behavior right now. Let's compare notes, and see why people are a bit hesitant about Harden as opposed to Kyrie being welcomed with open arms.

Lakers didn't, and that's a great point. but wouldn't be surprised if Clippers still try to trade for someone. And the Bucks did, they got Holiday. And I don't think it's just us that has this kind of conversation, I think a lot of teams do. I'd love to see this team perform at a high level as is, but maybe let's revisit in 3 weeks once the season starts to pick up.

[MrDollarBills]

I mean, many fans here probably viewed Kyrie as a malcontent until he got here and played for us. And we saw what it was like for him to be happy to be on a team that wanted him, and to see him want to be on this team. I see a similarity here with Harden.

Also, it's been 1 game. Against a pretty putrid Warriors team at that. Yes, everything went perfectly.

But what happens when we get punched in the face by a team that also has an amazing rotation? what happens when Kyrie and Levert go on a shooting slump? What happens if they end up load managing KD at some point, or an injury surfaces on the team that hurts our depth?

I'll tell you what -- the conversation is going to be that we still need a third star. And we're gonna be upset at the fact that we didn't make a move on Harden when the window was there. And what happens if at the time Harden is on an insane scoring streak? wins player of the week honors in back to back weeks?

I think if the move for Harden is there in the upcoming days/weeks, you just HAVE to make a move. The talent is just too tremendous. The ceiling for this team at that point will be absurd.

But I do think it still comes with a caveat -- I still think if there's a way to keep Levert, I'd love to keep him. I think he's perfect for this role. Maybe Dinwiddie, Allen, Prince, 2-3 1sts...?

Do the Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Heat etc need a third star? Why is it always us? No one is saying this about any of the other top teams.

Also, Kyrie's behavior in Boston versus Harden's behavior right now. Let's compare notes, and see why people are a bit hesitant about Harden as opposed to Kyrie being welcomed with open arms.

Lakers didn't, and that's a great point. but wouldn't be surprised if Clippers still try to trade for someone. And the Bucks did, they got Holiday. And I don't think it's just us that has this kind of conversation, I think a lot of teams do. I'd love to see this team perform at a high level as is, but maybe let's revisit in 3 weeks once the season starts to pick up.

Fair point. I think we definitely need some games with this group to assess properly whether or not we can roll with what we have or we need a trade.

I really think a healthy KD/Kyrie/Harris + elite depth is pretty much hard for any team to stop. But we'll see.

[StepBackCrack]

I just don't understand why people need to agree with each other here. It's ok to think differently.

Camp 1 (minority so far): They love the current team but still open to the idea of adding James Harden (especially as an injury insurance to KD/Kyrie and would make the team ridiculously talented).
Camp 2 (majority): Just want to stick with the current team because they look pretty good already.

Both are fine guys. I have no issue with either of these opinions.

[Brooklyn91]

Read on Twitter

?s=21

[Paradise]

Read on Twitter

?s=21

Rockets: “Hey, Sean. Let’s go over the last Harden offer and discuss what we are looking fo-“

Sean Marks:

[MrDollarBills]

Read on Twitter

?s=21

Rockets: “Hey, Sean. Let’s go over the last Harden offer and discuss what we are looking fo-“

Sean Marks:

Exactly. Hang up the phone.

[ecuhus1981]

The Rockets expect teams to froth at the mouth for James. They expect a Rube Goldberg machine of assets to divert a treasure trove of youngsters to them. Good luck to them, we're good on our offer, take it or leave it. They've been blowing up their phones for 3 weeks, looking for a better offer. We're not about to outbid ourselves.

[MrDollarBills]

The Rockets expect teams to froth at the mouth for James. They expect a Rube Goldberg machine of assets to divert a treasure trove of youngsters to them. Good luck to them, we're good on our offer, take it or leave it. They've been blowing up their phones for 3 weeks, looking for a better offer. We're not about to outbid ourselves.

The Nets should only offer picks and Dinwiddie/Allen/Prince.

I don't even think Harden has a place on this team and will disrupt the chemistry that has been built.

[therealbig3]

The thing about our depth though...it means we can afford to ship out 3 good rotation players (Dinwiddie, Levert, Allen) and still be ok from a depth perspective, because we have guys waiting in the wings to come in and replace them (TJ, Kurucs, Brown, Claxton). And we would get a superstar like Harden in return. If you think we're unguardable now, imagine having Kyrie, Harden, AND KD on the court at the same time. The defense literally wouldn't know what to do or who to focus on. Also, depth is overrated for a playoff run, since you're only gonna play your best 8 players or so anyway...doesn't really matter that we have the better 9th-12th men. So exchanging depth for superstar talent is generally the right way to go, especially when it comes to the playoffs.

I do see the other side of the argument though, we seem to be gelling really well from a team chemistry standpoint and there don't seem to be any issues in terms of sharing the ball between KD and Kyrie and our other ball handlers. That could change if you add ANOTHER high usage ball-dominant star into the mix. And we would lose our best defender in Allen.

I think our resounding success the first two games definitely makes this less clear-cut than it was before, when I was definitely all for the trade.

[Paradise]

The Rockets expect teams to froth at the mouth for James. They expect a Rube Goldberg machine of assets to divert a treasure trove of youngsters to them. Good luck to them, we're good on our offer, take it or leave it. They've been blowing up their phones for 3 weeks, looking for a better offer. We're not about to outbid ourselves.

The Nets should only offer picks and Dinwiddie/Allen/Prince.

I don't even think Harden has a place on this team and will disrupt the chemistry that has been built.

Tbh, all humor aside. I don’t know if I could take seeing this level of talent on any other rival team but our squad and we would be legit favorites every season for 3-5 years straight. This dude is ridiculous.

Watch on YouTube

[vincecarter4pres]

If you can trade for Harden, you trade for Harden, it’s that simple.

I’ll be honest, I’d hope Allen was the piece we kept if only 2 of three of him, Dinwiddie and Caris had to go out.

[StepBackCrack]

If you can trade for Harden, you trade for Harden, it’s that simple.

Yup. I'm still with this camp because it's James Harden but I'm perfectly fine with the current team. And yes, Allen especially is the one I would love to keep. He is our best rim protector but I would only let him leave for Harden. Otherwise, I would want him to have a long career with the Nets.

[MrDollarBills]

Again, management aside, Harden isn't exactly in a bad situation in Houston on the court. Christian Wood is by far the most underrated player in the league, and Wall and Cousins look good.

And yeah he is ridiculous. Dude isn't even in shape and he's breaking people down with ease.

I still don't sell the house for him though.

[DarkXaero]

Last night a reminder for those dismissing the idea of trading for Harden...Out of shape, strip club aficionado, selfish diva, etc. It doesn't matter, the dude is incredible on the court, he is legitimately elite.

[therealbig3]

Dinwiddie's injury basically makes a trade a no-go this season imo. MAYBE in the off season after Dinwiddie has surgery and is healthy, in a sign and trade? Cuz it doesn't look like Houston is exactly tanking right now, so I don't think they're interested in getting an injured player back who's a free agent after this season anyway.

And I don't think teams around the league are willing to shell out a 1st rounder for Dinwiddie in any sort of 3-way deal for the same reason.

And it was already a weak offer, even weaker now if Dinwiddie isn't part of the offer and we replace him with Prince instead or something.

[DarkXaero]

Dinwiddie's injury basically makes a trade a no-go this season imo. MAYBE in the off season after Dinwiddie has surgery and is healthy, in a sign and trade? Cuz it doesn't look like Houston is exactly tanking right now, so I don't think they're interested in getting an injured player back who's a free agent after this season anyway.

And I don't think teams around the league are willing to shell out a 1st rounder for Dinwiddie in any sort of 3-way deal for the same reason.

And it was already a weak offer, even weaker now if Dinwiddie isn't part of the offer and we replace him with Prince instead or something.

Yeah sadly, I agree. Dinwiddie wasn't worth much to Houston, but he could have been flipped to another team for an asset. An expiring contract of Dinwiddie with torn ACL has zero value. So what was already a low value offer just got lower. I wouldn't say the deal is completely dead (as Levert & Allen were still the most valuable assets in any potential trade), but it's more unlikely than ever now.

[therealbig3]

Maybe Joe Harris needs to be part of the deal now? God that would suck.