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Good that Harden is gone and it improves the Spurs chances against OKC ... but Martin always plays great against the Spurs ... I hate that guy even more than Harden
The main difference is that Chandler is a dominant big man who didn't choke up in the finals. Harden is a crafty guard who looked absolutely awful, and possibly cost his team the series with poor play.
The Thunder are better off long term building around the young prospects they got, which will allow them to have more breathing room in terms of salary allocation/not have to worry about a prima donna shooting guard with an egotistical streak whose value is ridiculously inflated for what he is.
Good that Harden is gone and it improves the Spurs chances against OKC ... but Martin always plays great against the Spurs ... I hate that guy even more than Harden
Harden is underrated if you think that lowly of him. He's more valuble than Westbrook for most teams in the NBA. I bet if someone ever did a GM poll, "if you could add either player to your team right now, Westbrook or Harden, who would it be?", you would be surprised to see how many would pick James Harden. He fits in with more teams better. Gets less points, sure, but he also consumes far less team possessions. 16.8 PPG 3.7 APG, uses up 15.3 team possessions. Westbrook: 23.5 PPG 5.5 APG, eats up 26 team possessions.
6.8 more points 1.8 more assists, but kills 10.5 more team possessions in the process to get it. So basically 3 baskets and 2 assists in nearly 11 more possessions. That's the offensive difference. Harden's better than you think dude.
Speaking of prospects, Harden was one of those prospects. You can't claim the Thunder will be better off long term when we already know the package OKC had last year works and could get them deep into the playoffs. Their players haven't even peaked. If they simply kept James Harden, this year OKC would've had their best team yet.
Now their future is questionable. Those draft picks they got aren't going to be as good as you think. The teams who no longer get those draft picks aren't going to tank so OKC can get better draft position. They're going to play properly as there's no benefit to losing.
In a nuts , OKC traded James Harden for a has-been and a roll of quarters. OKC will probably trade Kevin Martin mid-season too, unless they can convince him to take less money which I doubt will happen. Martin's worse than Harden and not any cheaper. It's a money saving move and that's it, not an upgrade move.
Kidd K with his usual bads.
Yes, this helps the Spurs but the Spurs got another year older and another year slower. The Thunder will be better next year just by the experience they gained in the finals. Spurs will still lose to the Thunder in a seven game series.
This is nice but I still can't see the Spurs getting past the Lakers.
I was thinking the same thing. elemento is right, depth wise they can get away with what they have in the back court, but Neal is a quality third guard and with a questionable starting PG and a play making SG, he'd fit in nicely in a three guard rotation.
As far as Johnson, I'd be shocked if he cleared waivers. Off the top, he makes sense for the Bobcats, Cavs, Suns and Kings. If he somehow clears, then it's a no brainer for the Spurs.
In terms of the trade, I'm a big Harden guy, but those who think this significantly alters the outlook of the West are getting carried away. It makes them worse, but not to the point where they're not the favorites. Sure, Martin can't play make or defend, but he'll be even more lethal as a clear cut third option. It does force Westbrook to make more decisions, but they do have Maynor back and they can play them together at times.
That being said, the Thunder probably didn't get enough. It depends on how good Lamb becomes and where the Raptors pick lands. But the Raptors look improved enough to the point where that pick probably lands late lottery and if it does, then what did they really get here? The Mavs pick is likely to land late teens and the Bobcats 2nd is guaranteed early 2nd round. Rather than being so focused on the depth of picks, the Thunder should have demanded the Rockets put their own 1st into it.
Spurs catch a break! Woohoo! NBALP is now worth it for me :P
Spurs chances of getting to the finals just went up.. If Tony outplays old man Nash (He usually does) Spurs might have a shot at this thing..
We're still a long-shot, but:
The thing that could be a concern is when Kevin...if healthy...sets his mind on getting to the FT line. He is extremely clever at that. Even moreso than Harden.. That added to KD's high numbers of FTA each and every game, can cause some heartburn and frustration in 4th quarters of games.
I'm guessing that none of the players matter. HOU held a lottery pick from TOR. That's like the future considerations. That's a great pick.For Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb, and future draft considerations.
Last edited by ChuckD; 10-28-2012 at 09:26 PM.
Spurs chances are not improved if they trot out the same frontline.
I was not laughing about what OKC got in the trade. Maybe I gave you the wrong idea. I actually think OKC got a decent value for him, especially considering they wouldn't match a max contract next season. We won't know who's the winner in this trade very soon. It depends on too much stuff. Harden's ability to be a go-to player, how bad/good Toronto season's end, How Martin plays in OKC , how Lamb turns out as a player, etc.
I laughed about the trade and whole idea of Harden getting a paycut because he loves OKC, he wants to play for a contender, he is BFF of Durant and Westbrook, bla bla bla.
In the end, it's always about money. I don't blame him for taking the money but I don't blame OKC either for not giving him a max extension. From what I've read, HOU can give Harden a 5-year max extension, so something around 5y/80m for Harden. Can you blame Presti ? Do you think Harden is worth this kind of money ?
He isn't a max player in my book.
Don't forget about Lamb. A solid combo guard who has shown to be a clutch player and is young enough to get even better off the bench.
Spurs have no shot. If they couldn't win last year when everything was lined up for them they are not winning this year bringing back the same team.
I like this trade for OKC, it hurts them this year, maybe, but as a purely economic move the thunder came out on top big time. They still have a great team and now will get young talent throught he draft.
Thinking about it, OKC has just kicked the can down the road 2 or 3 years until the Laker core ages out. They got That kid in the draft and could get a pick as high as #5 overall in the next two years, #3 the next year, or #2 the year after that.
What would it take for them to get picks that high?
That's the protection Toronto's pick has placed on it. They'll get in next draft if it is between 4 and 14. If not, they'll get it in 2014 if it is between 4 and 14, and so forth until the pick falls in the specified range or the protection runs out. OKC won't get high picks every year.
Read here for more on the Toronto pick: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--th...-27481909.html
Nobody watch the season this year.. It's already over...
Sets a strong tone for Presti and the Thunder management as well. Not going to around and mope over the demands of a player/agent.
This.
Presti knows this is Lakers' year, in principle. His turn for a cahmpionship will come, no hurry, his marketable superstar is only 24.
Houston is a bad team, and Harden will marginally improve them.
This makes the Thunder a more desirable matchup. lets hope we can take the 1 seed again and have okc do the dirty work of taking out LA.
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