2019-2020 NBA Season Thread

[d2o 1,602]

13 minutes ago, aggie08 said:

Imagine being a big enough bitch to pursue this immediately after two consecutive games where the livelihoods of two prominent players was actually threatened in the most disheartening ways possible.

I'm trying to remember and cant find the vid but didn't Ujiri just push him?   He didnt even fall right?

[ChiTownDoc 21,154]

4 hours ago, d2o said:

 

 

“As a direct and proximate result of Defendants’ conduct, Plaintiff ALAN STRICKLAND suffered injury to his head, body, health, strength, nervous system, and person, all of which caused and continue to cause Plaintiff great mental, physical, emotional and psychological pain and suffering,” Strickland stated.

 

 

LMAO.  Imagine if every black person bothered by pigs sued for being 'put through' whatever this pussy ass bitch cop was.  The entire legal system would be tied up for a billion years.  Hope this frivolous horseshit is thrown out.  And I hope karma fucks that cop all the way to his grave...

Edited February 11, 2020 by ChiTownDoc

[Kermit 3,158]

I know that Bret Belima fits the description, but what if Jokic is also a ffr? Do they have a club where they get together and drool?

[Brothahorn 10,087]

Cream City, LOL

[washparkhorn 9,939]

Bucks need a Oscar+Kareem+Hank city jersey.  

Spoiler

Milwaukee deserves better. 

 

Edited February 11, 2020 by washparkhorn

[d2o 1,602]

https://twitter.com/RealGM/status/1227323922544238592?s=20 https://twitter.com/RealGM/status/1227323922544238592?s=20

 

[SilasCoade 2,622]

I was watching the Spurs-Thunder last night and realized the Thunder have come out of the whole Paul George-Westbrook debacle pretty nice. SGA is going to be a bad man very soon. He's a great on-ball defender and has suddenness and smoothness to his offensive game. Chris Paul is their only bad contract. Danilo is the only piece they need to work on re-signing for next year. At 31 letting him walk wouldn't really be a back breaker since he doesn't really fit the window of SGA's development. A sign and trade with him, or dumping Chris Paul's contract on somebody for draft picks and/or younger wings could really set them up nicely. They have a couple first round picks this year (if they hold onto their own by sliding into a top 20 pick), which could let them trade up to get a real early impact player.

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

1 hour ago, Llogg said:

I was watching the Spurs-Thunder last night and realized the Thunder have come out of the whole Paul George-Westbrook debacle pretty nice. SGA is going to be a bad man very soon. He's a great on-ball defender and has suddenness and smoothness to his offensive game. Chris Paul is their only bad contract. Danilo is the only piece they need to work on re-signing for next year. At 31 letting him walk wouldn't really be a back breaker since he doesn't really fit the window of SGA's development. A sign and trade with him, or dumping Chris Paul's contract on somebody for draft picks and/or younger wings could really set them up nicely. They have a couple first round picks this year (if they hold onto their own by sliding into a top 20 pick), which could let them trade up to get a real early impact player.

It's hard to purposefully tank in the NBA.  Sure, you can trade good players but with salaries, you're generally getting good players back.  OKC's record is basically the same as it was last year with Westbrook and Paul George.

I think they want to dump everyone except SGA.  With him and all of the draft picks in the next 10 years, they're actually in a very good place.  Chris Paul's contract is bad but it's one year shorter than Westbrook's, which I think is almost as bad based on what it looks like at the end.  

[Reynolds Woodcock 4,797]

3 hours ago, Llogg said:

I was watching the Spurs-Thunder last night and realized the Thunder have come out of the whole Paul George-Westbrook debacle pretty nice. SGA is going to be a bad man very soon. He's a great on-ball defender and has suddenness and smoothness to his offensive game. Chris Paul is their only bad contract. Danilo is the only piece they need to work on re-signing for next year. At 31 letting him walk wouldn't really be a back breaker since he doesn't really fit the window of SGA's development. A sign and trade with him, or dumping Chris Paul's contract on somebody for draft picks and/or younger wings could really set them up nicely. They have a couple first round picks this year (if they hold onto their own by sliding into a top 20 pick), which could let them trade up to get a real early impact player.

Presti has had a very odd tenure.

• He drafts Durant, Westbrook, and Harden. Great.
• He trades the second best of the three future MVPs for very little in return (a pick that later became Steven Adams, along with a few mediocre players). Quite possibly the worst trade in NBA history, considering the ramifications. 
• He then loses one of the 20 greatest players of all time in free agency. Very, very bad.
• He trades Ibaka for Oladip, Sabonis and Ilyasova, who would later be traded for Paul George. On the whole, pretty good.
• He then re-signs George when everyone assumed there was no chance that would happen. Good
• He's then forced to trade George to LAC, but extracts SGA and a boat load of picks. He then trades the third MVP on the down slope of his career with a monstrosity of a contract, and gets more picks and an apparently not-washed-up Chris Paul in return. 

On the whole, it's hard to say that he isn't one of the best GMs in the league, which is bizarre to say about a guy who had 3 future MVPs (plus young Ibaka) and managed to only win a single conference championship. 

[hobbes2702 13,052]

4 hours ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

Presti has had a very odd tenure.

• He drafts Durant, Westbrook, and Harden. Great.
• He trades the second best of the three future MVPs for very little in return (a pick that later became Steven Adams, along with a few mediocre players). Quite possibly the worst trade in NBA history, considering the ramifications. 
• He then loses one of the 20 greatest players of all time in free agency. Very, very bad.
• He trades Ibaka for Oladip, Sabonis and Ilyasova, who would later be traded for Paul George. On the whole, pretty good.
• He then re-signs George when everyone assumed there was no chance that would happen. Good
• He's then forced to trade George to LAC, but extracts SGA and a boat load of picks. He then trades the third MVP on the down slope of his career with a monstrosity of a contract, and gets more picks and an apparently not-washed-up Chris Paul in return. 

On the whole, it's hard to say that he isn't one of the best GMs in the league, which is bizarre to say about a guy who had 3 future MVPs (plus young Ibaka) and managed to only win a single conference championship. 

His track record is very good no doubt but the goal is to win titles and he is at fault for the thunder not winning one. The Harden trade is and should be a huge black mark on his career

[conVINCEd 21,469]

30 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

His track record is very good no doubt but the goal is to win titles and he is at fault for the thunder not winning one. The Harden trade is and should be a huge black mark on his career

In reality, he drafted too well, if such a thing is possible.

[Blotto 23,564]

Lakers Nugs getting started on ESPN. Should be a good one. 

[Rougarou 594]

Just got back from Memphis Grizzlies and Portland Trailblazers game at Fedex Forum:

1) Ja Morant has the juice now, dog. He's fearless and his energy when he's on the court is amazing. I just love this guys game. 

2) Portland has horrible defense and this is why they will not be a playoff team.

3) The Grizzlies being the only sports in town, and walking distance from Beale St., make for a rocking good time even on a random Weds.

4) Nothing is more sad than seeing a washed Carmelo Anthony creak along the court. He looks like he needs an ice bath and ice on his knees after 3 mins. He makes Vince Carter look like Zion.

Edited February 13, 2020 by Rougarou

[aggie08 21,513]

9 hours ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

Presti has had a very odd tenure.

• He drafts Durant, Westbrook, and Harden. Great.
• He trades the second best of the three future MVPs for very little in return (a pick that later became Steven Adams, along with a few mediocre players). Quite possibly the worst trade in NBA history, considering the ramifications. 
• He then loses one of the 20 greatest players of all time in free agency. Very, very bad.
• He trades Ibaka for Oladip, Sabonis and Ilyasova, who would later be traded for Paul George. On the whole, pretty good.
• He then re-signs George when everyone assumed there was no chance that would happen. Good
• He's then forced to trade George to LAC, but extracts SGA and a boat load of picks. He then trades the third MVP on the down slope of his career with a monstrosity of a contract, and gets more picks and an apparently not-washed-up Chris Paul in return. 

On the whole, it's hard to say that he isn't one of the best GMs in the league, which is bizarre to say about a guy who had 3 future MVPs (plus young Ibaka) and managed to only win a single conference championship. 

- Paying Carmelo Anthony $26M to play basketball for them and only getting out of paying him another $27M by agreeing to pay Dennis Schroeder $36.5M to play basketball for them instead. Hilariously, predictably bad.

If he's one of the best GMs in the business (and he very well might be), then he owes Kawhi Leonard a giant fruit basket.

His heartfelt, tearful goodbye to Russ as he presumably high-fived everyone in the building immediately afterward was pretty impressive.

I also assume that OKC's pathetic avoidance of the luxury cap all these years came from ownership, not Presti, so I won't hold that against him.

[washparkhorn 9,939]

Sorry to see Dame with the injury.

Nuggets played well against the Lakers, but really missing Barton, Porter, Jr. and Plumlee. Had no answer for Davis/Howard twin tower act. Went to OT, but a loss is a loss. With the quality NBA refs, a team has to be up 10 in any game against the Lakers. All Star Calls + Laker Destiny Calls. Welcome to Laker/NBA basketball.

Lakers are beatable. Clips, Nugs and any hot West teams can take them. But they bring a lot to a game. 

[goatsaag 279]

1 hour ago, aggie08 said:

- Paying Carmelo Anthony $26M to play basketball for them and only getting out of paying him another $27M by agreeing to pay Dennis Schroeder $36.5M to play basketball for them instead. Hilariously, predictably bad.

Acquiring Schröder who might be the favorite for 6th man of the year right now for Melo is a bad thing?

[washparkhorn 9,939]

Backstory - 

ESPN has been sleeping on the Nuggets, which just happens to coincide with a Team/Cable problem that has fans who have cable television unable to see the Nuggets games. It is a mess.

Denver fans are pissed at ESPN because they just want to see Nuggets games and sportscenter highlights because they can't see the games on television in Denver.

Sooo. . . when an ESPN broadcaster comments on the Nuggets and it is obvious he knows nothing about the team - Denver fans react and the ratio follows:. 

 

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

17 hours ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

Presti has had a very odd tenure.

• He drafts Durant, Westbrook, and Harden. Great.
• He trades the second best of the three future MVPs for very little in return (a pick that later became Steven Adams, along with a few mediocre players). Quite possibly the worst trade in NBA history, considering the ramifications.
• He then loses one of the 20 greatest players of all time in free agency. Very, very bad.
• He trades Ibaka for Oladip, Sabonis and Ilyasova, who would later be traded for Paul George. On the whole, pretty good.
• He then re-signs George when everyone assumed there was no chance that would happen. Good
• He's then forced to trade George to LAC, but extracts SGA and a boat load of picks. He then trades the third MVP on the down slope of his career with a monstrosity of a contract, and gets more picks and an apparently not-washed-up Chris Paul in return. 

On the whole, it's hard to say that he isn't one of the best GMs in the league, which is bizarre to say about a guy who had 3 future MVPs (plus young Ibaka) and managed to only win a single conference championship. 

It's been covered extensively but Harden was leaving anyway.  People like Bill Simmons keep repeating otherwise but that doesn't make it true.  (Simmons thinks OKC should have kept Harden as a Manu Ginobli type player.  Does anyone see Harden living in OKC and coming off the bench for a decade?  I certainly don't.)  Also, no one knew Harden was going to be THAT good.  People thought he'd be a B+ level player but he turned out to be a superstar.  There has been some revisionist history going on with this trade for a long time.

Presti's real kryptonite during his tenure has been the supporting cast.  While he's been a master at the big names, the supporting cast up until this year has been filled with guys who are awful on either defense or offense.  (Usually the latter.)  Durant even said something to that effect last week on some podcast.  Presti kept signing guys that had borderline offensive skills and you're asking the 2-3 stars to each score 30 points and that's not going to happen.  Prototypical Presti player is a shooting guard who can't shoot.  Had he not been injured, you would have had lineups with Nerlens Noel and Andre Roberson on the floor at the same time.  

Strangely enough now, they have shooters all over the place.  

[aggie08 21,513]

6 hours ago, goatsaag said:

Acquiring Schröder who might be the favorite for 6th man of the year right now for Melo is a bad thing?

That part seems to be working out; though, I'd argue there's some blind luck involved. Schroder sucked shit through a straw for them last season and is having a career year by a country mile. Dumping Melo for what's turned into a productive piece--overpaid or not--is a miracle in itself, so maybe I was a little harsh. But it was incredibly dumb it saddle themselves with Melo (especially alongside Russ and PG) in the first place, and everyone knew exactly how that story was going to go.

[Mitch Cumsteen 18,550]

8 hours ago, aggie08 said:

I also assume that OKC's pathetic avoidance of the luxury cap all these years came from ownership, not Presti, so I won't hold that against him.

This can't be understated. He had to make a move but he hitched his wagon to Serge Ibaka instead of James Harden. I find the notion that Harden, Westbrook and Durant couldn't or wouldn't coexist extremely presumptive. If they were winning rings, they all stay. Both Russell and Harden didn't evolve into the ball dominant iso hogs they are until they broke up. I still believe they could have made that work. One of those guys attacking your third best perimeter defender on every possession is a scary proposition. 

If you want to criticize Presti, I think hiring PJ and then Scotty Brooks were both horrific hires. I do like Donovan though. Carlesimo just wasn't the right guy to coach non-vets on a rebuild and I think Brooks is just incompetent. A better second hire and I think things may have played out differently with Durant. 

[aggie08 21,513]

24 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

It's been covered extensively but Harden was leaving anyway.  People like Bill Simmons keep repeating otherwise but that doesn't make it true.  (Simmons thinks OKC should have kept Harden as a Manu Ginobli type player.  Does anyone see Harden living in OKC and coming off the bench for a decade?  I certainly don't.)  Also, no one knew Harden was going to be THAT good.  People thought he'd be a B+ level player but he turned out to be a superstar.  There has been some revisionist history going on with this trade for a long time.

And you continue to be dead wrong on this. They were a few million off in their contract talks. Not a few million per year; a few million total. And, even if OKC was hesitant about his long term fit and his agreeability remaining a 3rd fiddle, you don't fucking trade a core member of a young team (on a team-friendly deal) that just made it to the fucking Finals without at least getting something that could help you NOW. They should have started the season with him. Maybe they could have found a better deal at the deadline. Maybe they jump out to a 37-5 record and realize that what they have is special. Maybe they win the whole damn thing and are feeling a little more generous with their money. Maybe he still leaves for nothing anyway, but at least you took a real shot at winning a title.

I despised Harden at the time, and even I thought it was an awful trade.

[Reynolds Woodcock 4,797]

1 hour ago, Aqua Buddha said:

It's been covered extensively but Harden was leaving anyway.  People like Bill Simmons keep repeating otherwise but that doesn't make it true.  (Simmons thinks OKC should have kept Harden as a Manu Ginobli type player.  Does anyone see Harden living in OKC and coming off the bench for a decade?  I certainly don't.)  Also, no one knew Harden was going to be THAT good.  People thought he'd be a B+ level player but he turned out to be a superstar.  There has been some revisionist history going on with this trade for a long time.

There isn't even a point in responding to this with logic. It was laughably bad in the moment, and it has become exponentially worse with time and hindsight. 

Edit: What aggie said. Also, going in on Kendrick Perkins. Laughable. 

Edited February 13, 2020 by Reynolds Woodcock

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

It’s like people think Harden was going to sign max deal to be a backup in OKC.  M’kay.

Does anything about Harden’s personality make you think he’d do either of those, let alone both?

 

[d2o 1,602]

12 minutes ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

There isn't even a point in responding to this with logic. It was laughably bad in the moment, and it has become exponentially worse with time and hindsight. 

Edit: What aggie said. Also, going in on Kendrick Perkins. Laughable. 

This is the part that isn't mentioned enough.   They would have been able to keep all KD, Russ, Harden and Serge if they had been willing to amnesty Perk.   I've always heard it was to appease KD but whoever was responsible for THAT decision is the real responsible party.

[d2o 1,602]

4 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

It’s like people think Harden was going to sign max deal to be a backup in OKC.  M’kay.

Does anything about Harden’s personality make you think he’d do either of those, let alone both?

 

Even if he was leaving, as aggie mentioned, the trade did not have to be made when it was.    Additionally, it may have been a little tough at times but they could absolutely started all 3 and with some staggered minutes made it work IMO.   Especially as the league started trending to more uptempo and smaller lineups.

Edited February 13, 2020 by d2o

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

3 minutes ago, d2o said:

Even if he was leaving, as aggie mentioned, the trade did not have to be made when it was.    Additionally, it may have been a little tough at times but they could absolutely started all 3 and with some staggered minutes made it work IMO.   Especially as the league started trending to more uptempo and smaller lineups.

That was the miss they did have.  They were working under the model that the Lakers would be a perennial power in the West and history suggests they’d have an All Star center.  (Throw in the Spurs, too.). They thought they needed the post defender and a traditional PF.  They had Perkins who was awful and ended up with Adams who is a solid defender.

The small ball/pace and space blindsided them.

[SilasCoade 2,622]

12 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

That was the miss they did have.  They were working under the model that the Lakers would be a perennial power in the West and history suggests they’d have an All Star center.  (Throw in the Spurs, too.). They thought they needed the post defender and a traditional PF.  They had Perkins who was awful and ended up with Adams who is a solid defender.

The small ball/pace and space blindsided them.

Which is hysterical given they had both Harden and Durant who could have led that revolution, opening up driving lanes for Westbrick.

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

10 minutes ago, Llogg said:

Which is hysterical given they had both Harden and Durant who could have led that revolution, opening up driving lanes for Westbrick.

One school of thought back then was instead of the decision being Harden or Serge to instead keep them both and trade Westbrook for a more traditional PG.  Not sure who that would have been at the time but looking back, that would have been the best option.

[Dutchrudder 11,150]

OKC should have given Harden the max deal he wanted (A max for him was 6 million more over 4 years), and let him think about it. If he was intent on leaving to become an alpha dog of his own team, then you force him to make that decision. If he signs, great, OKC would be into the tax a little bit, but they can maneuver around it knowing the exact cost of Harden/KD/Russ/Ibaka. Start the season with him and the whole roster in place, and if it isn't working, you can trade Harden, Ibaka or whoever at the deadline to adjust. Really simple stuff, but OKC chose to flip him for Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb and a 1st. That would probably be OK for a franchise rebuilding, but when you're in Win-Now mode, you need to get better assets than that. 

Other option is to just keep him on his contract with 1 year remaining, where he is a very cheap, tradeable asset that likely would have fetched more at the deadline. 

[aggie08 21,513]

1 hour ago, Aqua Buddha said:

It’s like people think Harden was going to sign max deal to be a backup in OKC.  M’kay.

Does anything about Harden’s personality make you think he’d do either of those, let alone both?

 

I agree that, even if they maxed him, even if they made him a full-time starter, he almost certainly wouldn't have spent the entirety of that contract in OKC.

So?

Guys are signed all the time with the knowledge that they'll likely be traded later. He still would have been easy to move at any point for good value. The only thing you CAN'T do is trade him for Kevin Martin and future assets when you're a legitimate contending team. Oops.

Edited February 13, 2020 by aggie08

[hobbes2702 13,052]

10 hours ago, washparkhorn said:

Backstory - 

ESPN has been sleeping on the Nuggets, which just happens to coincide with a Team/Cable problem that has fans who have cable television unable to see the Nuggets games. It is a mess.

Denver fans are pissed at ESPN because they just want to see Nuggets games and sportscenter highlights because they can't see the games on television in Denver.

Sooo. . . when an ESPN broadcaster comments on the Nuggets and it is obvious he knows nothing about the team - Denver fans react and the ratio follows:. 

 

I watch a lot of Nugs games because of my schedule and Jokic is in bad shape and does need to be in better shape. He’s still great but he cannot play defense at the level needed sometimes because he is carrying to much weight and does get fatigued.

[hobbes2702 13,052]

2 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:

OKC should have given Harden the max deal he wanted (A max for him was 6 million more over 4 years), and let him think about it. If he was intent on leaving to become an alpha dog of his own team, then you force him to make that decision. If he signs, great, OKC would be into the tax a little bit, but they can maneuver around it knowing the exact cost of Harden/KD/Russ/Ibaka. Start the season with him and the whole roster in place, and if it isn't working, you can trade Harden, Ibaka or whoever at the deadline to adjust. Really simple stuff, but OKC chose to flip him for Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb and a 1st. That would probably be OK for a franchise rebuilding, but when you're in Win-Now mode, you need to get better assets than that. 

Other option is to just keep him on his contract with 1 year remaining, where he is a very cheap, tradeable asset that likely would have fetched more at the deadline. 

Keep him and play out his contract at worst. Presti threw away a chance to run at a title because they wouldn’t max him. It’s a massive fuckup and there’s no spinning it.

[d2o 1,602]

20 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

I watch a lot of Nugs games because of my schedule and Jokic is in bad shape and does need to be in better shape. He’s still great but he cannot play defense at the level needed sometimes because he is carrying to much weight and does get fatigued.

They said last night that he's lost 20 lbs recently.   He looks better but still not good

 

[HtownHorn 14,760]

Any OKC fan, what was the reason behind trading Jermani Grant? I get the youth movement, but a 24 year athletic wing coming off a near .500/.400/.700 season seems like a nice building block.

[hobbes2702 13,052]

2 hours ago, d2o said:

They said last night that he's lost 20 lbs recently.   He looks better but still not good

 

I think the big surprise was that he showed up out of shape to begin with. Most thought that because of the international games this summer he would have to stay in shape but that didn’t happen. He’s playing himself into shape for sure though.

[d2o 1,602]

13 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

I think the big surprise was that he showed up out of shape to begin with. Most thought that because of the international games this summer he would have to stay in shape but that didn’t happen. He’s playing himself into shape for sure though.

He got his contract last yr and then played in the summer.   He clearly took a nice break after playing in the summer.

[washparkhorn 9,939]

Jokic is hard to define . . . but some try:

 

[Kermit 3,158]

4 hours ago, HtownHorn said:

Any OKC fan, what was the reason behind trading Jermani Grant? I get the youth movement, but a 24 year athletic wing coming off a near .500/.400/.700 season seems like a nice building block.

I don’t think they expected to compete for the playoffs this season. They got another first round pick. They probably expect to have a lot of turnover in the coming seasons. 

[washparkhorn 9,939]

16 minutes ago, Kermit said:

I don’t think they expected to compete for the playoffs this season. They got another first round pick. They probably expect to have a lot of turnover in the coming seasons. 

Grant has been one hell of a player for Denver this year. He is a major contributor to the Nuggets. 

[SilasCoade 2,622]

Man, if Jokic had Lebron's diet/physio team ... scary. He's leaving 5 years of his career and probably 10% of his production on the dining room table.

[Blotto 23,564]

12 hours ago, Aqua Buddha said:

One school of thought back then was instead of the decision being Harden or Serge to instead keep them both and trade Westbrook for a more traditional PG.  Not sure who that would have been at the time but looking back, that would have been the best option.

I always thought they should have tried to get Rajon Rondo for Westbrook. Rondo was happy to be a facilitator, could score when needed, capable of playing pretty good D, and a pretty competitive guy. 

Edited February 14, 2020 by Blotto

[ChickenSandwich 9,848]

*dumb question amnesty  
 

Why does the NBA have the trade deadline before the All Star break?  Seems early as shit. 

[Goo Punch 4,275]

1 hour ago, Llogg said:

Man, if Jokic had Lebron's diet/physio team ... scary. He's leaving 5 years of his career and probably 10% of his production on the dining room table.

i've seen videos from the offseason where he's fucking hanging out in some shitty trailer out in BFE, Serbia with his family. like, zero frills. walmart looking clothes, dingy lighting, those plastic/fake linoleum floors, the whole 9. weirdest fucking thing. 

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

13 hours ago, aggie08 said:

And you continue to be dead wrong on this. They were a few million off in their contract talks. Not a few million per year; a few million total. And, even if OKC was hesitant about his long term fit and his agreeability remaining a 3rd fiddle, you don't fucking trade a core member of a young team (on a team-friendly deal) that just made it to the fucking Finals without at least getting something that could help you NOW. They should have started the season with him. Maybe they could have found a better deal at the deadline. Maybe they jump out to a 37-5 record and realize that what they have is special. Maybe they win the whole damn thing and are feeling a little more generous with their money. Maybe he still leaves for nothing anyway, but at least you took a real shot at winning a title.

I despised Harden at the time, and even I thought it was an awful trade.

God damn.  James Fucking Harden was not passing up being the man in Houston with its strip clubs and no state income tax to take less money to come off the bench in Okie City were he's eating at Slobster and going to titty bars with women with knife wounds.

Jesus.  Stop repeating this narrative.  He was leaving anyway.  For fuck's fucking sake.

[Goo Punch 4,275]

3 hours ago, washparkhorn said:

Jokic is hard to define . . . but some try:

 

i would gild your post if this was reddit.

/phrasing 

[Aqua Buddha 14,600]

11 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:

OKC should have given Harden the max deal he wanted (A max for him was 6 million more over 4 years), and let him think about it. If he was intent on leaving to become an alpha dog of his own team, then you force him to make that decision. If he signs, great, OKC would be into the tax a little bit, but they can maneuver around it knowing the exact cost of Harden/KD/Russ/Ibaka. Start the season with him and the whole roster in place, and if it isn't working, you can trade Harden, Ibaka or whoever at the deadline to adjust. Really simple stuff, but OKC chose to flip him for Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb and a 1st. That would probably be OK for a franchise rebuilding, but when you're in Win-Now mode, you need to get better assets than that. 

Other option is to just keep him on his contract with 1 year remaining, where he is a very cheap, tradeable asset that likely would have fetched more at the deadline. 

(I'll do this for you, too.)

God damn.  James Fucking Harden was not passing up being the man in Houston with its strip clubs and no state income tax to take less money to come off the bench in Okie City were he's eating at Slobster and going to titty bars with women with knife wounds.

Jesus.  Stop repeating this narrative.  He was leaving anyway.  For fuck's fucking sake.

[ChickenSandwich 9,848]

James Harden wasn’t James Harden until he played with Houston. Just as dumb to say a career 6th man coming off a poor playoff performance would have demanded a max contract. 

[immortal13 4,059]

28 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

God damn.  James Fucking Harden was not passing up being the man in Houston with its strip clubs and no state income tax to take less money to come off the bench in Okie City were he's eating at Slobster and going to titty bars with women with knife wounds.

Jesus.  Stop repeating this narrative.  He was leaving anyway.  For fuck's fucking sake.

You had me laughing at strippers with knife wounds. Are there some that don't?

[Goo Punch 4,275]

this is actually pretty damn cool:

 

[aggie08 21,513]

57 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

God damn.  James Fucking Harden was not passing up being the man in Houston with its strip clubs and no state income tax to take less money to come off the bench in Okie City were he's eating at Slobster and going to titty bars with women with knife wounds.

Jesus.  Stop repeating this narrative.  He was leaving anyway.  For fuck's fucking sake.

Whatever narrative you're selling is fucking stupidity personified. Maybe next time try some reading comprehension.