Did James Harden really turn down a contract extension that would have made him the first player in league history to earn $50 million a year? Does he want to leave the Houston Rockets that bad?
And if the reports are true, are the Brooklyn Nets ready to ante up for the former MVP?
Now that the NBA trade moratorium has been lifted, transactions can occur at any time. The rumor mill is in high gear.
The game is indeed out there, and it’s play or be played. For teams like Houston and Brooklyn, the stakes are high.
First, the Rockets…
In September, Mike D’Antoni told the team he won’t be back as their head coach, basically choosing free agency instead. The Rockets were barely out of the NBA Bubble when D’Antoni informed them he was out. He’s now in Brooklyn ready to help new head coach Steve Nash.
A month later, general manager Daryl Morey stepped down and found his way to the City of Brotherly Love. A month after that, Russell Westbrook reportedly asked for a trade.
And now, while we all wait to see what happens with Westbrook, the spotlight’s on Harden.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Harden reportedly declined a two-year, $103 million extension from Houston. That’s on top of the three years, $133 million left on his current deal.
If you’re the Rockets, and your best player turns down $50 million a year to stay – there’s a problem. If Wojnarowski’s report is true, the Rockets should be working around the clock to try and get the best possible deal for Harden.
The NBA offseason, fueled by social media, is four-star drama, at it’s best.
Which brings us to the Brooklyn Nets…
According to multiple reports, Harden is finding the idea of teaming up with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving to be intriguing. The All-Star guard is ready to move on from the Rockets and is eyeing a move to Brooklyn, per Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle.
“Harden has been increasingly uneasy about the Rockets’ ability to compete for an NBA title and has been considering the possibility of pushing to play elsewhere before his contract expires, sources said.” – Adrian Wojnarowski, Ramona Shelburne, and Zach Lowe
The idea of Harden teaming up with Durant and Irving has NBA fans refreshing their twitter feeds every five minutes for updates. Can you imagine if Woj dropped that bomb on all of us?
If this happens, and there’s rumors this is close to becoming a reality, is the basketball big enough to share?
Harden, Durant, and Irving are three ball-dominant players. Is there enough compromise between the three to make it work for Brooklyn?
Perhaps just as good a question is how far are the Nets willing to go with facilitating a deal for Harden? The return Houston will want back projects to be massive. But, in my opinion, Brooklyn has the assets to bring to the table.
Two teams, moving in different directions. The Rockets are facing a potential makeover, if they want it or not. The Nets, already navigating their way through championship expectations, could have a third superstar ready to join them. All they’d have to do is say yes and be prepared to accept what comes with that.
For now, all we have are multiple reports to analyze.
But where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And, with this, there’s enough smoke to get up and start looking around for the fire extinguisher.
Image Credit: NBA Getty
