knicknyk: Foolishness

I didn’t say that’s the reason they traded him, but I’m sure it made them feel he wasn’t exactly irreplaceable

d-mar:
I’m sure that Harden’s miserable 18-48 shooting in the Finals factored into OKC’s thought process.

Foolishness

The only thing they really lose with Harden is his playmaking and chemistry. The playmaking is certainly a blow, but Westbrook showed serious improvement in lowering his turnovers as the playoffs went on and I think he’s ready to be the full-time PG this team needs him to be. Durant is also improving as a playmaker, and Ibaka has shown some serious signs of improving his offense. If Perry Jones delivers on his talents by the playoffs, they won’t have to play Perkins serious minutes against Miami. The Heat don’t have a true center period, why should the Thunder worry if they only have 1?

As far as this year, the Lakers and Heat are going to be at their absolute best this year, several core players on both teams should start declining pretty noticeably, with little room for flexibility (Battier, Allen, Kobe, Nash, Wade, Gasol, Artest) If I’m Sam Presti and know Durant and Westbrook are going to hit their absolute primes in another 2 or 3 years, and that the Lakers and Heat have monster teams assembled mostly to win these next 2 years, reloading for the next few years while keeping costs down and still being a good contender these next 2 years makes a lot of sense. Let’s keep in mind that OKC had a really close series against Miami in the Finals and Harden didn’t give them shit on either end. The one game OKC won was the game Harden sat out the fourth quarter for Derek freaking Fisher. He should also improve since he’s very young, but if I can get Kevin Martin to give me 80% of what Harden did (efficient scoring mostly) while improving my chances down the line when it really matters, that’s certainly a deal I can live with

BigBlueAL:
So much for the OKC Thunder dynasty.

I don’t think that at all. You’ve still got a ridiculously good core of Westbrook, Durant, and Ibaka. You’ve got Lamb, who’s got promise, as well as depth wing guys like Sefalosha (ie. Tony Parker-killer). Kevin Martin is probably gone after this year. In the frontcourt other than Ibaka, you’ve still got Perkins (for the Dwight Howard matchups) and Collison. They just drafted Perry Jones, who would’ve been a top 5 or 10 pick if he hadn’t stayed in school last year. They get a mid-high lottery pick (from TOR) + another #1 pick from Houston, in addition to their own #1s. They have no luxury tax concerns so if they really want to bite at a MLE or BAE they can.

So they’ll be a legitimate REAL contender + cap space + lottery picks + their own picks + good hungry young talent even behind their core guys.

This team is STACKED. If you read Hollinger’s analysis, I agree wholeheartedly with him re: fit. One of Durant and Westbrook is going to be on the floor the whole time, so Harden’s full skill set is not quite as necessary on this team — Kevin Martin is going to have a TS somewhere in the low 60s this year given that he’s not going to have any attention paid to him unlike in his whole career when he’s basically been the go-to scorer. He’ll probably shoot 45% from 3 with all the open shots he’ll get.

massive:
Oklahoma City will not get to the Western Conference Finals this year. You don’t trade a .263 WP/48 (.230 WS/48) guy for a .077 WP/48 guy (.125 WS/48) and a rookie. The Thunder will almost certainly take a step back, especially if Westbrook thinks it’s okay to take more shots now that Harden is gone.

And excuse James Harden for wanting to get all of the money he’s worth. He watched Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, and Kevin Durant all get their money, so why should he be the player to get short-changed? More power to him.

But Kevin Martin posted a WP48 of .210 once!!! and .190 and .185 two other times!!!!!

Then, some people talk about how consistent this metric is from season to season.

OKC’s position here is easier to understand than Phoenix’s. OKC “couldn’t” give Harden the money he wanted. They’re not going to go spend his salary on other players.

BigBlueAL:
I read that Harden is basically getting an extra 20 million by signing max extension the Rockets will be offering him compared to what OKC was offering him.

yeah, there’s a 5th year in play as well as the fact that TEX has no state income tax.

it really feels like a Joe Johnson leaving Phoenix move to me (although this was a trade and that was FA). that’s worked out for JJ financially but he also cost himself his best chance at being part of a title team.