The art of 'hitting the ground running': What realistic piece would help HTGR? (39)

[Miekenstien]

harden is one of my favourite players. love watching him.

[The Coach]

It took Harden a couple of seasons to become what he is now. With Westbrook and Durant entering their peak years, it doesn't seem sensible to me to start sending out pieces to think about competing down the road when they are already competing now.

I just look at OKC and see a great team already. Why take away an important piece in the hopes of greatness when they are already approaching greatness.

The difference in the past was their eye was towards the future and a great team. They are now already a great team. I don't understand taking a step back in the hope of becoming even better especially when it is not a sure thing.

First of all, thank-you mods for moving my post to this thread... I should have known there was already a thread open on this, especially since the thread titles were practically the same.

Second, the point of this article is that OKC is going to be facing a challenge with the cap and will have to make some tough decisions regarding who stays and who goes. I don't know Harden, but could we have a Tracy McGrady situation on our hands? He has to be one of the most underrated players in the league because he plays in the shadows of Durant and Westbrook. It might be that OKC wants to keep him, but he might want his own spotlight... not sure Toronto offers that, but I can hope. Who knows, maybe OKC wins it all this year, Harden plays a big role in that and OKC management looks to sell high... Toronto's 1st and Demar (their new sixth man)? I don't know what it would take; however, I do see the writers thoughts about restocking the shelves and still keeping their current superstars.

[mcHAPPY]

First of all, thank-you mods for moving my post to this thread... I should have known there was already a thread open on this, especially since the thread titles were practically the same.

Second, the point of this article is that OKC is going to be facing a challenge with the cap and will have to make some tough decisions regarding who stays and who goes. I don't know Harden, but could we have a Tracy McGrady situation on our hands? He has to be one of the most underrated players in the league because he plays in the shadows of Durant and Westbrook. It might be that OKC wants to keep him, but he might want his own spotlight... not sure Toronto offers that, but I can hope. Who knows, maybe OKC wins it all this year, Harden plays a big role in that and OKC management looks to sell high... Toronto's 1st and Demar (their new sixth man)? I don't know what it would take; however, I do see the writers thoughts about restocking the shelves and still keeping their current superstars.

The difference between T-Mac and Harden is there was no restricted free agency in the days of T-Mac. If McGrady had been offered a deal, the Raptors could have matched with restricted free agency.

I can see the premise the writer is operating under but they don't need to worry about keeping their superstars. They already have them under contract for another 4 and 5 years, respectively. I think there is more risk of alienating those stars by rolling the dice and trading away a known (and great) commodity now on the hope of a draft pick working out later..... what if the pick becomes nothing near Harden?

[The Coach]

The difference between T-Mac and Harden is there was no restricted free agency in the days of T-Mac. If McGrady had been offered a deal, the Raptors could have matched with restricted free agency.

I can see the premise the writer is operating under but they don't need to worry about keeping their superstars. They already have them under contract for another 4 and 5 years, respectively. I think there is more risk of alienating those stars by rolling the dice and trading away a known (and great) commodity now on the hope of a draft pick working out later..... what if the pick becomes nothing near Harden?

Would OKC have the money to match other teams for Ibaka and Harden? What is the minimum years they can sign a RFA? If Harden wasn't happy, would OKC even want to keep him?

[mcHAPPY]

Would OKC have the money to match other teams for Ibaka and Harden? What is the minimum years they can sign a RFA? If Harden wasn't happy, would OKC even want to keep him?

Who knows for sure? Answers to any of those questions would be speculation.

Opportunities to win in sports are hardly guaranteed. The Thunder are one of the best teams right now. Why would they mess with that when they definitely have one full season and possibly two full seasons to take any action?

The issue with Ibaka and Harden is not the salary cap. OKC has their Bird Rights and can resign them regardless of the cap. The issue is the luxury tax which becomes more punitive starting in the 2013-14 season. Who knows what happens to the NBA salary cap and luxury tax thresholds after 2012-13? They werefrozen for 2 years in the new CBA. Depending on revenues, salary cap and luxury tax figures could go up - or they could go down.

The decisions made, forward thinking, in the past were made to become good and eventually great.
The decisions now, forward thinking, are made to remain good and possibly great.
In my opinion, that creates a big difference in how the decision making process works going forward.

[The Coach]

Who knows for sure? Answers to any of those questions would be speculation.

If I were the Thunder I would want to keep him as well and I realize that the chances of Toronto getting Harden are not high; however, the article highlighted some reasons (speculations) for why Harden could be moved and I see Toronto as a place with the pieces and motivation to be interested. Haven't watched him much this year and am interested to see how he looks against Toronto tonight.

As for the T-Mac comparison, I was referring to the fact that McGrady wanted his own spotlight and didn't want to share with VC. I was speculating that Harden could be in a similar situation; however, in the new "Superheroes Unite" era, this may be null.

[The Coach]

Hey Matt, I think I read somewhere that the Raps can only deal with non playoff teams and then with teams as they are eliminated from the playoffs. Is that correct? I know that this would not impact draft night but wonder what type of players are available or desirable from non playoff teams etc.

How about players in the Euroleagues? Just thinking about Kirilenko and his "MVP" year. What's his contract situation? I believe I remember hearing BryCo had some interest before... what do you guys think (he is 31 yrs old)?

[planetmars]

How about players in the Euroleagues? Just thinking about Kirilenko and his "MVP" year. What's his contract situation? I believe I remember hearing BryCo had some interest before... what do you guys think (he is 31 yrs old)?

I think we can do better than Kirilenko personally. He's going to be asking for a semi-big contract (probably in the $9M range/year), and for a guy who's often injured and is already 31 that might be too high of an asking price. If we can get him for about $6 or $7M (ie, Wilson Chandler money) I would consider it.

[Miekenstien]

I think we can do better than Kirilenko personally. He's going to be asking for a semi-big contract (probably in the $9M range/year), and for a guy who's often injured and is already 31 that might be too high of an asking price. If we can get him for about $6 or $7M (ie, Wilson Chandler money) I would consider it.

depending on the draft and of course asking price, i think your 6-7 is very fair for him, i wouldn't mind kirilenko. not my first choice but wouldn't mind the signing. it would make the 3 spot a definite defensive strength for us. and give jj some more time to grow and a player to mold his offense after.

i am sure that what colangelo and casey want is to be perennial drafters in the 20-30 range, where you pick a player that fits your system. then you just get into the habbit of playing with the same people and the same way every game and every year like the spurs.

i think that in the 20-30 range the best scouts make the best choices. everyone can see who the top 3 players are every year but to constantly find good rotation players that can sometimes pan out into players like dj blair is the sign of a successful program.