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James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was)

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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#41 » by MrDollarBills » Wed Mar 3, 2021 6:42 pm

Paradise wrote:Bleacher Report details the real truth on how Harden forced his way to the Nets

Throughout the month of October, Harden considered leaving Houston. He had quietly spoken to some of his inner circle about his interest in the Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers.

In November, the thought of joining Brooklyn grew more intriguing for Harden. He started training with Kevin Durant at the Mamba Academy, developing a relationship with the team.

By Nov. 11, Harden indicated to Russell Westbrook he wanted to be traded to Brooklyn. As a result, Westbrook asked out. Not because of Harden's partying tendencies or the Rockets' culture issues, but simply because he knew Harden wanted out, according to multiple sources close to the Rockets.

Harden spent significant time in L.A. with Durant in mid-November and became fully committed to the idea of playing with the Nets. The two met to reaffirm their desire to play with one another and started laying the foundation for a trade, sources say.

By Nov. 17, news of the potential deal had spread across the league. Harden and Durant thought it would be finalized on Nov. 22, when trades could officially be announced. But Rockets management changed its tune. Harden, Durant and the Nets had underestimated the Rockets' capacity to posture for a better deal.

"Houston was being difficult," a front-office executive familiar with the Rockets' negotiating tactics at the time told Bleacher Report.


In the following days, Harden began making his partying increasingly public. He showed up to training camp late and appeared visibly out of shape. He believed he could force a trade if he could anger team governor Tilman Fertitta enough, according to sources close to Harden.

As Harden delayed his arrival to training camp in December, the Heat became the front-runner for him. Harden's main preference was—and always was—the Nets, but he had no problem going to Miami. Jimmy Butler had even OK'd the trade.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2934230-the-2-month-trade-request-how-james-harden-forced-his-way-out-of-houston



:lol: KD was straight up tampering.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#42 » by MrDollarBills » Wed Mar 3, 2021 6:44 pm

Paradise wrote:Harden & Adidas are teaming up to support 25 local owned Brooklyn businesses

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This dude is **** awesome. I know of BK9 personally and they hit a lot of hardship due to covid. He’s really helping the community forward.


That's what's up. It really sucks that fans and Harden haven't been able to interact like how things were before the pandemic, so this outreach goes a long way.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#43 » by Openheimer » Thu Mar 4, 2021 9:16 am

Openheimer wrote:27 points 12 assists 10 boards in the last 10 games with Durant and the Nets went 9-1

I meant without. Now it’s 10-1
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#44 » by gigantes » Sun Mar 7, 2021 2:39 am

Prokorov wrote:
gigantes wrote:
Prokorov wrote:There are no cons, and it wasnt a steep price. the best thing we gave up was jarret allen. the risk is very much mitigated by houston owing 4 of its next 5 picks to OKC. that and our current situation will make it extremely unlikely more then 2 convery and a good bet 0 convey.

For an MVP and top 5 player AND we still have depth.

People drastically overrated levert, overstated a percieved lack of depth post trade, and criminially underrated harden all while neglecting the impact of always having 2 all-nba players on the floor. take it further and harden keeps you afloat with KD/Kyrie durability issues.

Oh, go f-ck yourself... Jason isn't it?

It still blows my mind how you're like 90% right on everything, but that last 10% is just ridiculously elusive for you, for whatever reason.

You're a f-cking moron at times, Proky. Maybe just own that once in a while? Like, just maybe?

it is Jason

I admit when im wrong all the time (See recent: Claxton comments)

I dont see what you object to in the post above thought:

-The risk on the picks IS mitigated by Houstons uphill path to be better then us for swaps to convey, since they owe picks to OKC
-Harden was being underrated
-Levert was being overrated
-Harden HAS kept us afloat with KD and won us a game vs. the suns
-Allen WAS the best thing we gave up.

Well, in the spirit of keeping it real- I think you do admit when you're wrong, sometimes, altho that typically tends to be when you yourself recognise yourself to be breathtakingly wrong.

Thing is, I don't think it's nearly as exclusive a club as you might suspect, so to speak. (for example, weren't you just saying a little higher up that there were NO risks to this trade?)

The risk on the picks IS mitigated by Houstons uphill path to be better then us for swaps to convey, since they owe picks to OKC

You would be perfectly right if we'd only given away four or so. We gave away SEVEN.

Issue-- there is very little way of predicting how things are going to go with not just the health of the Big Three, but "contract time" as well (altho likely to a lesser degree).

Still, all I'm really trying to acknowledge here is that the path Marx chose is indeed filled with plenty of risks, uncertainties, and cost. That said-- "We're All In; Let's Gopher It, Duderinos!"

Seriously, after twenty years of fandom, I have utterly no desire to be pessimistic as a Nets fan. Just that, I can't help weighing things in my mind, here and there.

I agree with you on just about everything else, and sincerely apologise for my rudeness just there. The loss of Fro was definitely the most bitter pill for me, altho I'm thrilled by the performance of Clax, recently. He's never going to exactly be "Jarrett," but he really seems to fit the scheme, so to speak.

Speaking of all that, weren't you saying just a couple weeks ago that the guy was little more than G-League trash? C'mon now, Prokhy-- own it... own it! :D

--Good to meet you, Jason in Beantown, my name is Nic (like Clax), from The City of Police Brutality Brotherly Love, currently living circa Mistake by yon Lake.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#45 » by HardenGoat » Mon Mar 8, 2021 2:40 pm

If this gets us a championship nothing else matters. Good to see, at least a bit, maybe just a little .. unity building? Guys, I really think we got something special going on and I'am stoked :nod: :rockon:
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#46 » by Paradise » Tue Mar 9, 2021 8:25 pm

I find it incredibly interesting the media is NOT reporting the story of how Kobe told Harden he won’t win a championship with his current playing style and he also did it publicly to motivate him.

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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#47 » by Gamezero05 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 4:38 pm

Honestly, I’m glad Harden is getting lots of love now, but it also kind of pisses me off.

As a Rockets fan, I’ve watched this dude play incredible basketball every night for 8 years, and he was constantly getting trashed. Not given the respect he clearly deserved. It was incredibly frustrating.

Then he gets traded and all of a sudden the media and everyone act like he’s so amazing (which he is) but they weren’t giving him anywhere near the credit they’re giving him now.

I’m glad he’s finally getting the respect he deserves for being such an incredible player, but where was this the past 8 years?
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#48 » by Pelly24 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 6:40 pm

Gamezero05 wrote:Honestly, I’m glad Harden is getting lots of love now, but it also kind of pisses me off.

As a Rockets fan, I’ve watched this dude play incredible basketball every night for 8 years, and he was constantly getting trashed. Not given the respect he clearly deserved. It was incredibly frustrating.

Then he gets traded and all of a sudden the media and everyone act like he’s so amazing (which he is) but they weren’t giving him anywhere near the credit they’re giving him now.

I’m glad he’s finally getting the respect he deserves for being such an incredible player, but where was this the past 8 years?


I do think that's really funny lol. Sure he doesn't ISO as much, but if Kyrie wasn't there, and KD wasn't there, he'd probably be back to averaging 31/8/12 on 62 TS% like always. He's always been an incredible passer and an unstoppable scorer. His playoff failures have always been overstated. Only once before this year (with the Rockets) had he played with anyone as good as Klay Thompson or KD, and that was in 2018 (CP3, still top 7 player) and they almost beat a team that was still much better. Now the NBA media and fans have cultivated this narrative that he's turned over a new leaf instead of noting the fact that he's playing with an actually elite group of players and doesn't have to put up those numbers. So much of sports coverage is confirmation bias. Harden is now who he's been since roughly 2016 or so: a top 5 player who is arguably the best scorer and best passer in the league during the regular season. He's also no one's "Robin."
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#49 » by Suwanee » Fri Mar 12, 2021 6:45 pm

Gamezero05 wrote:Honestly, I’m glad Harden is getting lots of love now, but it also kind of pisses me off.

As a Rockets fan, I’ve watched this dude play incredible basketball every night for 8 years, and he was constantly getting trashed. Not given the respect he clearly deserved. It was incredibly frustrating.

Then he gets traded and all of a sudden the media and everyone act like he’s so amazing (which he is) but they weren’t giving him anywhere near the credit they’re giving him now.

I’m glad he’s finally getting the respect he deserves for being such an incredible player, but where was this the past 8 years?

You, my friend, are not alone.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#50 » by Gamezero05 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 8:25 pm

Pelly24 wrote:
Gamezero05 wrote:Honestly, I’m glad Harden is getting lots of love now, but it also kind of pisses me off.

As a Rockets fan, I’ve watched this dude play incredible basketball every night for 8 years, and he was constantly getting trashed. Not given the respect he clearly deserved. It was incredibly frustrating.

Then he gets traded and all of a sudden the media and everyone act like he’s so amazing (which he is) but they weren’t giving him anywhere near the credit they’re giving him now.

I’m glad he’s finally getting the respect he deserves for being such an incredible player, but where was this the past 8 years?


I do think that's really funny lol. Sure he doesn't ISO as much, but if Kyrie wasn't there, and KD wasn't there, he'd probably be back to averaging 31/8/12 on 62 TS% like always. He's always been an incredible passer and an unstoppable scorer. His playoff failures have always been overstated. Only once before this year (with the Rockets) had he played with anyone as good as Klay Thompson or KD, and that was in 2018 (CP3, still top 7 player) and they almost beat a team that was still much better. Now the NBA media and fans have cultivated this narrative that he's turned over a new leaf instead of noting the fact that he's playing with an actually elite group of players and doesn't have to put up those numbers. So much of sports coverage is confirmation bias. Harden is now who he's been since roughly 2016 or so: a top 5 player who is arguably the best scorer and best passer in the league during the regular season. He's also no one's "Robin."
The talking heads in the media never admit when they’re wrong. So instead of admitting they had Harden all wrong, they claim it’s Harden who changed! Harden is the one who miraculously changed into the player the all-knowledgeable media wanted him to be. It’s not the media who was wrong for all those years. Because they could never be wrong.

I mean he’s altered his game slightly since he has other highly capable offensive players next to him now, but he’s the exact same player. Some years he does more scoring and less assisting. Some years he does more assisting and less scoring. It depends on the personnel around him. He had a year with the Rockets where he averaged 29 pts and 11 assists. This isn’t uncharted territory for him. He’s the exact same guy he’s been. And he’s always been very efficient. Instead of having a 62% TS% like he did with the Rockets, he has a near 65% TS% with the Nets. That’s what happens when you put other weapons around him. He’s even more efficient because he’s getting easier looks.

But this is the same guy. He hasn’t changed.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#51 » by Openheimer » Sun Mar 14, 2021 5:21 am

This is why you trade for a top 5 player
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#52 » by Dmagic » Thu Mar 18, 2021 2:23 am

Gamezero05 wrote:Honestly, I’m glad Harden is getting lots of love now, but it also kind of pisses me off.

As a Rockets fan, I’ve watched this dude play incredible basketball every night for 8 years, and he was constantly getting trashed. Not given the respect he clearly deserved. It was incredibly frustrating.

Then he gets traded and all of a sudden the media and everyone act like he’s so amazing (which he is) but they weren’t giving him anywhere near the credit they’re giving him now.

I’m glad he’s finally getting the respect he deserves for being such an incredible player, but where was this the past 8 years?


we thought it was a fluke. and the spurs series kind of cemented that in manys ways.
but now that he is beside two great players we can see clearly how good harden is. the things he did in houston all of a sudden become more relevent than before. also the situation here is something to get excited about. its very exciting to see harden be the oil that gets this machine in first place if you will
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#53 » by Papi_swav » Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:00 am

Gamezero05 wrote:Honestly, I’m glad Harden is getting lots of love now, but it also kind of pisses me off.

As a Rockets fan, I’ve watched this dude play incredible basketball every night for 8 years, and he was constantly getting trashed. Not given the respect he clearly deserved. It was incredibly frustrating.

Then he gets traded and all of a sudden the media and everyone act like he’s so amazing (which he is) but they weren’t giving him anywhere near the credit they’re giving him now.

I’m glad he’s finally getting the respect he deserves for being such an incredible player, but where was this the past 8 years?

I feel u but Harden got lots of love when he was in Houston, he was once the MVP in Houston and was literally mentioned like very year in the MVP conversation. He probably should of won 2 MVPs though IMO. But alot of the trash he gets is because of his playoff history I think and also the way he left Houston that might of left a bad taste in some ppl mouths.

Also, now with the Big 3 in BK , Nets have become must see TV now. I understand what you're saying tho, he is getting a little more love than he was getting in Houston but I think it's more that he's effortlessly putting up triple doubles while playing with other stars. And ofcourse the other stars and players the Nets have are making him look a little better by hitting their shots. Just my 2 cents
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#54 » by Whiskey Slick » Thu Mar 18, 2021 5:03 am

Harden would be the MVP favorite if the writers weren't holding his Houston experience against him.

Because they are, AND THEY ARE, I'm not sure if he will win it, but IMO he deserves it SO FAR.

With KD out for well over a month, and Kyrie missing quite a few games too, he's been carrying this team.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#55 » by Suwanee » Thu Mar 18, 2021 1:23 pm

The scary part is, you have not seen the best Harden yet. Wait till he drops a 60 point triple double. Scary Hours indeed
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#56 » by Suwanee » Thu Mar 18, 2021 2:07 pm

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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing basketball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#57 » by HardenGoat » Thu Mar 18, 2021 2:21 pm

I think a lot of hate was coming from the big market areas in LA, which controls a big segment of the media including social media. He was and still is the biggest threat to their title aspirations. Now that he is on a bigger platform than Houston they had to back off, he is still the same player though, people overstated what support he truly had. They said he wanted CP3 gone in favor of Westbrook, but he actually wanted CP3 and Westbrook. They say he got everything he wanted, that's not true, he was given choices. The 2018 Rockets were the best supporting cast and they would have toppled the greatest team ever assembled. What happened after that was a new owner came in and spread the message that the team was cutting costs, meanwhile the Warriors spread the message they would do anything to win, players respond to that. Rockets started lowering their ceiling while Warriors kept it high. That was all on the owner, who even alienated Morey and lame ducked D'Antoni the final season. Who wouldn't leave that situation??
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#58 » by Prokorov » Thu Mar 18, 2021 4:42 pm

Harden is the league MVP... and honestly it isnt close.

Luka/Embiid were crowned before the season started. Dallas is a meh team with luka piling up empty stats. Embiid doesnt have the impact on winning harden does. his team has not missed a beat without him. Lebrons team looks like a lotto team without AD. Jokic might not be the MVP of his own team when it comes to having the game on the line.

Nets were 14-12 when they got harden. KD/Kyrie have missed a ton of time. but the nets are 21-7 with Harden. He is dropping 26/12/9 on 48/38/87 and 64 TS% with the nets. He has led us to 14-1 over the past 15 games and we will soon have the leagues best record.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#59 » by sashaturiaf » Thu Mar 18, 2021 5:07 pm

Harden won't get it even if he does deserve it, the drama at the start of the season and the very selective "you can't be MVP on a superteam" criteria that KD knows very well about will make sure of it.

Lebron has this year's MVP on lock because the media has made clear who their preference is and the Lakers are good enough to justify giving it to him, Jokic has a slim chance if the Nuggets end up in the top 3 and his stats are just too good for anyone to deny him. In the very unlikely circumstance of a Laker meltdown plus Nuggets ending up a lower seed in the West they will probably give it to Giannis even though they don't want to for non-sensical narrative reasons.
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Re: James Harden is a crushingly, amazing bball player (I cannot believe how wrong I was) 

Post#60 » by Prokorov » Thu Mar 18, 2021 5:11 pm

sashaturiaf wrote:Harden won't get it even if he does deserve it, the drama at the start of the season and the very selective "you can't be MVP on a superteam" criteria that KD knows very well about will make sure of it.

Lebron has this year's MVP on lock because the media has made clear who their preference is and the Lakers are good enough to justify giving it to him, Jokic has a slim chance if the Nuggets end up in the top 3 and his stats are just too good for anyone to deny him. In the very unlikely circumstance of a Laker meltdown plus Nuggets ending up a lower seed in the West they will probably give it to Giannis even though they don't want to for non-sensical narrative reasons.


IT will go to Embiid or Luka. and people wil then say donovan mitchell or jokic got snubbed

in reality its Harden and maybe Lebron who are the only ones who should be considered. no one else is even remotely close.

The Luka stuff is so tired. People keep hating on Luka over trae but honestly their teams records are near identical and the stats arent as off as people make it other then luka having more rebounds in a league where no one tries to crash the glass anymore

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