SA37 wrote:My argument isn't whether he is a top-10 pg or not; my argument is whether he is the right fit for Miami, especially at the cost both in trading for him and the contract extension he'd be looking for.
You see the glass half full on Harden ; I see it half empty. I think there are massive differences between Harden and Lillard both on and off the court, as far as their personalities/demeanor go, and as far as their abilities to be positive leaders for the Heat. I also don't think Harden is good playing off the ball, and that is something he'd likely need to do in Miami.
I get those arguments about culture fit and personality, but I am just looking at numbers and cap considerations mostly.
i) Both have strengths and weaknesses, but the basketball fit is very similiar to what Dame was. When you look at some normalized stat like PER, the difference between the two is like 15%. Harden also did it on a winning team. When it comes to defense Harden is bigger and stronger, so I would rather take him than Dame on the defensive end.
ii) Dame's 4y max contract vs a guy who is on an expiring deal and after you can control mostly for how long you sign him and can sync his contract with other important contracts on your roster. Harden is easily the better option here, escpecially if you consider salary cap commitment/production that you end up with. You can look at it of having Harden + Herro, instead of just Dame.
SA37 wrote:None of the criticisms I've made of Harden are unmerited, and I made similar arguments against acquiring him when he was asking out of Houston. So far, Harden has proven to be the problem I suspected he might be when things went south in Houston. I, for one, would not be willing to acquire him at the asking price, both from a trade standpoint or from a contract extension standpoint.
Harden wasn't always unhappy and trying to get out, played a long time in Houston until it became obvious they are not competitive.
Certainly a risk with him that he might get unhappy again, but if things are right I doubt he'll make any drama.
I think it would be the perfect time to acquire Harden, because his value is probably as low as it is ever going to be.
If you can get him for smth. like Lowry/Caleb + 1 FRP + 2 swaps and have him on a contract that allows you to build out the roster around a core of Jimmy, Bam, Herro, Harden it's pretty good. You still have all your young prospects that you can develop, while trying to fully maximize the Jimmy window.
I don't know there are obviously ton's of things that could already have happened behind the scenes that make this trade unrealistic. Just looking at it from a numbers/salary cap and basketball fit view, I can easily make a case that he is probably the best chance at maximizing the Jimmy window that is out there right now.