8 hours ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

From the athletic 

1. The Nets were in Cleveland Jan. 17. In their locker room before the game, Kyrie Irving lit ablaze some sage — a Native American ritual Irving has embraced to cleanse negative energy. Irving doesn’t do this before every game, but he apparently still feels haunted by parts of his past on the Cavs. So he lit his torch.

2. Harden, according to sources who were in the room when it happened, was seated in front of his locker, watching Irving, and looked at Kyrie like he had three heads.

3. "Definitely a weird vibe between them,” one source said. "You could tell Harden was annoyed, and Kyrie wasn’t feeling James.”

4. In two seasons, Harden has quit on two teams until they traded him. When he tries to explain this one, my guess is he will not come out and say, explicitly, that he wanted to be as far away from Kyrie as possible. But make no mistake, Irving had something to do with it.

5. Opening night — so, Oct. 19 — in Milwaukee, I asked Harden, point blank, if he was happy with the Nets. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, definitely,” he said. I asked because the night before, the NBA’s deadline for contract extensions passed without Harden signing one to stay in Brooklyn past this season. "I love it here,” he said. "I feel at home. It’s nothing to worry about.” What changed?

6. The Nets were in first place on New Year’s Eve, in spite of a COVID-19 surge that ripped through the team. On Jan. 5, the day of Irving’s first game this season, Brooklyn was 1 ½ games behind the Bulls for first. The Nets, as a matter of fact, were in first in the East as recently as Jan. 22. They have not won since.

7. Yes, there are a number of factors that play into this current nine-game losing streak. One is Kevin Durant’s knee injury. Another is Harden, who has missed three straight games and five of the past seven with hamstring soreness — which first appeared after the Nets lost at home to the struggling Lakers, and Harden was on the court by himself because Durant was hurt and Irving won’t take the COVID vaccine.

8. The Nets were built with the idea that the Big 3 would carry them. Harden knew it. He’s seen Durant miss large amounts of time due to injury the past two seasons, and now Irving won’t take the same shot Harden took to be eligible to play home games. Durant and Irving have what Harden, 32, does not: a title.

9. Harden has said publicly he was frustrated the Nets weren’t playing better. He saw how much the Nets need Irving on the court, all the time, and did the math on how nuts that would be to play home playoff games without Irving, even though Irving isn’t hurt.

10. "I’mma give him the shot,” Harden once joked of Irving. Now that seems like less of a joke.

11. The Nets were 13-3 when Durant, Harden and Irving played in the same game, so this next argument is a little harder to make. But Harden’s ball-dominant, initiate-and-shoot style is not a great fit for Irving. Kyrie moved off of his point guard spot when the Nets traded for Harden last season. With Simmons, Irving can remain off the ball, but he knows the ball will come to him more often because Simmons won’t be pounding out the shot clock and looking for 3s.

12. Irving was ready for Harden to move on, too. When Irving heard Harden was in fact hoping to be traded, a well-placed source says he was eager to see it come to fruition.

Irving is mentally ill. 

8 hours ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

 

That's why keeping our young core was so important. 

2 hours ago, NYEagle said:

It's amazing to me how many people (on NBA TV, ESPN, etc.) are like the Nets crushed the Sixers in this trade!  The Nets won this trade hands down!  Yes, Simmons is great defensively, yes he can rebound and push the ball....yes they have great offensive players in Durant and Irving....but quick question, what can Durant and Irving do if you foul Simmons the second he gets the ball in a close game?  You are basically taking the ball out of Durant and Irving's hands.  Now let's go to the Sixers, not sure if these analysts are aware but...ummm....Simmons wasn't playing for the Sixers and they had the 5th best record.  Now you add Harden and the Sixers are worse off?  

I don't know how this will ultimately turn out but I'll take a shot with Harden (you know, the guy that had two recent triple doubles with over 30 points in them before his hamstring - or supposed - injury) teaming up with Embid and see if we can win it!!

It was kinfd of the same thing with McNabb and Reid. National people see highlights and a game here and there. They don't see every minute of every game. Patience. This will blow up in the Nets face and its going to be epic. 

8 minutes ago, Gannan said:

That's why keeping our young core was so important. 

Yep.

Something I said when everyone said I was an idiot for not wanting to include Maxey in a Lillard trade. 

Some insight from a Nets fan:

 

Nets fan here. Unlike some other members of our fanbase, I have no ill will towards Harden and I understood his frustration with the situation. Nash was running him into the ground with a roster with no spacing for him to work with while Kyrie was at home sitting on his ass. I don't blame him one bit for wanting out, and I wish him the best of luck in trying to win a ring.

The real issue is this: He definitely is banged up, and he's not in the shape that he was back when he was carrying Houston a few years ago. He's still a great player, but it is clear that his game is on a bit of a decline this season and the way refs officiate him hasn't helped, as he gets hammered pretty much on every drive and they swallow the whistle. I think if Doc can reduce his minutes to help him stay healthy, he will be fantastic for you guys, as you guys are in way better health and Embiid imo is #1 in the MVP race. It will be interesting to see how their games mesh.

Something to watch for: This season, Harden has been really slow getting the ball up the court and getting the team into sets. He absolutely killed our pacing. I'm not sure what kind of offense you guys run but that may be an issue if Harden doesn't adapt, because I doubt you guys want your offensive sets to start with 14 secs or less on the clock.

sixers walk the ball up on offense too...hell, i can't remember the last fast break they've had other than a 'tisse steal.   

2 minutes ago, mr_hunt said:

sixers walk the ball up on offense too...hell, i can't remember the last fast break they've had other than a 'tisse steal.   

Embiid should have a lot more easy buckets and not have to work as hard.  Harden will be feeding him some lobs and dishes in the paint when Embiid's man comes to help.  Hopefully they can share the load throughout the game so come the 4th quarter Embiid isn't exhausted from hard carrying the team for the entire game.

Doc talked about Thybulle early in the season and what he was excited for him to add to his game. And he talked about using his athleticism in fastbreaks more. With Ben not playing, Thybulle was supposed to be flying down the court and helping us maintain pace which used to be near the top of the league.

I suspect the 6ers still want pace. But, with Embiid and Harden, and Danny Green, it doesnt seem like theyre gonna get it this year. We lack athletes.

1 hour ago, barho said:

So they are going all in.  I like it

Can they win? Maybe, but Harden hasn't won any place he has been and is 33 with health concerns. Embiid has injury issues, and I'm not convinced they have the depth around them to make it happen. I'd love to see him flip Harden in a three way trade this summer but that is unrealistic. 

The smart thing would have been to take the Kings trade, move Harris, and sign Harden this summer. They could have gotten another young piece for the future and gotten their guy. If they win this year I'll be happy to be wrong, but I think we will look back on this with what could have been. It's exciting now, but I'm not sold it was the right approach. 

1 hour ago, HazletonEagle said:

Could it be possible that Harden is a stepping stone to a deal next year for a guy like Beal, or Ingram?

He opted in to the contract for next year so itll be an expiring deal for a bad team looking for cap relief. On the other hand, do we really want to extend a guy who will be 34 years old for another 5 years 260 million?

 

I dont know if its true, but I read Kyrie will get the shot now. He just wanted Harden gone.

I was thinking about this last night...what if Morey doesn't rush to extend him this offseason? He's like the greatest expiring contract asset in history next year. 

Basically, Harden is going to have to play well to earn his megabucks. If we don't extend him, we can flip him for a king's ransom potentially next year.

3 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

Doc talked about Thybulle early in the season and what he was excited for him to add to his game. And he talked about using his athleticism in fastbreaks more. With Ben not playing, Thybulle was supposed to be flying down the court and helping us maintain pace which used to be near the top of the league.

I suspect the 6ers still want pace. But, with Embiid and Harden, and Danny Green, it doesnt seem like theyre gonna get it this year. We lack athletes.

Keep in mind that during the playoffs the pace slows down anyway.  I'd rather them be more proficient in the half court than a fast break team.  All you simply have to do is watch Simmons in the playoffs.  Regular season is all fine and dandy when teams aren't getting back and he can push the pace.  Playoffs the teams get back and his lack of ability to run any semblance of a half court offense was exposed and the team floundered because Embiid had to do it all.  While he's proven capable of it this season, it's not what you want.  Maxey just isn't there yet.  I was never a big Harden guy but he can breakdown his guy and score in a multitude of ways in the half court and has developed into a great passer over the years, too.  We just got a lot better.

1 minute ago, rambo said:

Keep in mind that during the playoffs the pace slows down anyway.  I'd rather them be more proficient in the half court than a fast break team.  All you simply have to do is watch Simmons in the playoffs.  Regular season is all fine and dandy when teams aren't getting back and he can push the pace.  Playoffs the teams get back and his lack of ability to run any semblance of a half court offense was exposed and the team floundered because Embiid had to do it all.  While he's proven capable of it this season, it's not what you want.  Maxey just isn't there yet.  I was never a big Harden guy but he can breakdown his guy and score in a multitude of ways in the half court and has developed into a great passer over the years, too.  We just got a lot better.

yeah. What we needed for years was another half court shot creator for the playoffs. We definitely got that now.

We actually sort of added 2 because Maxey is developing that ability. 

Just now, HazletonEagle said:

yeah. What we needed for years was another half court shot creator for the playoffs. We definitely got that now.

We actually sort of added 2 because Maxey is developing that ability. 

If I'm Doc, I'm staggering Maxey and Harden as much as possible.  Maxey should be running the 2nd unit quite a bit.  He gets to keep developing into a PG and Harden doesn't need to be logging 37 minutes a game in the regular season.  Nash was killing him up there.  He's older and shouldn't be logging those kind of minutes in the regular season.

5 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

I was thinking about this last night...what if Morey doesn't rush to extend him this offseason? He's like the greatest expiring contract asset in history next year. 

Basically, Harden is going to have to play well to earn his megabucks. If we don't extend him, we can flip him for a king's ransom potentially next year.

Yeah. Last night I talked about the next move Morey needs to figure out, which is the one that will take him from being good, for doing a Harden trade at a reasonable price, to great- for figuring out a way to not be stuck here. To still be able to add to this roster, and/or create new flexibility in the future. To be able to still go get a Beal, or LaVine.

@e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! then mentioned Danny Green's expiring deal, Mattise Thybulle as a young asset, and Tobias Harris, and picks as a package that can make a next move.

I said maybe next year is the year to go save Ingram from New Orleans. And today I was thinking about how Doncic is sorta iffy on staying on the Mavs.

Id say Harden, Harris, Thybulle, and Green and picks/swaps might realistically have a shot to land Doncic if he eventually asks for a trade.

back to this season   i wouldn't mind dragic as the 3rd guard....he's kind of washed but i trust him more than shake. 0for4's tea leaves have him going to the mavs though. mavs are already loaded at guard and would @probably cut trey burke to make room for dragic...so then maybe burke is an option.    

 

 

Sixers twitter has been pretty funny today.  Tons of people digging up old tweets from talking heads saying the 6ers were crazy not to dump Simmons for guys like Brogdon and LeVert while you also have tons of people trying to convince JJ Reddick to come out of retirement.

It's nice to see 6ers fans happy about the team for the first time since the Hawks series.

 

 

9 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

Yeah. Last night I talked about the next move Morey needs to figure out, which is the one that will take him from being good, for doing a Harden trade at a reasonable price, to great- for figuring out a way to not be stuck here. To still be able to add to this roster, and/or create new flexibility in the future. To be able to still go get a Beal, or LaVine.

@e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! then mentioned Danny Green's expiring deal, Mattise Thybulle as a young asset, and Tobias Harris, and picks as a package that can make a next move.

I said maybe next year is the year to go save Ingram from New Orleans. And today I was thinking about how Doncic is sorta iffy on staying on the Mavs.

Id say Harden, Harris, Thybulle, and Green and picks/swaps might realistically have a shot to land Doncic if he eventually asks for a trade.

That would be smart.

3 hours ago, NYEagle said:

It's amazing to me how many people (on NBA TV, ESPN, etc.) are like the Nets crushed the Sixers in this trade!  The Nets won this trade hands down!  Yes, Simmons is great defensively, yes he can rebound and push the ball....yes they have great offensive players in Durant and Irving....but quick question, what can Durant and Irving do if you foul Simmons the second he gets the ball in a close game?  You are basically taking the ball out of Durant and Irving's hands.  Now let's go to the Sixers, not sure if these analysts are aware but...ummm....Simmons wasn't playing for the Sixers and they had the 5th best record.  Now you add Harden and the Sixers are worse off?  

I don't know how this will ultimately turn out but I'll take a shot with Harden (you know, the guy that had two recent triple doubles with over 30 points in them before his hamstring - or supposed - injury) teaming up with Embid and see if we can win it!!

Yeah I noticed that.  SAS and Bayless say shock jock stuff for reaction so that didn't surprise me too much.  But then you had guys like Clinton Yates and even Bob Ryan, who is a basketball guru, saying that the Nets won the deal.  Sir Charles knows what a slug Ben was.  He has said it on Mikey Miss and elsewhere but even he was lukewarm on the Sixers after the trade. 

I don't get it.  I hope that they are all wrong. 

Just look at the minutes Harden was logging in December and January before he got "hurt".  No Fing wonder he wanted out.  Kyrie sitting at home watching conspiracy youtube videos and researching flat earth theories while Harden was trying to carry the team.

1 minute ago, mr_hunt said:

back to this season   i wouldn't mind dragic as the 3rd guard....he's kind of washed but i trust him more than shake. 0for4's tea leaves have him going to the mavs though. mavs are already loaded at guard and would @probably cut trey burke to make room for dragic...so then maybe burke is an option.    

 

 

yeah Dragic is the guy Id most want on buyout. Him and Trystan Thompson seems ideal. 

Dragic wants minutes so he either shouldnt be going to the Mavs crowded situation, or theyll be cutting a guard to make room for him. Id take just about any of their guards.

 

Doncic still has a very good PER. He still averages 1 steal a game too in limited minutes. It seems like he can still defend ok. His 3pt shooting is not great these days, but he would be a really nice guard off the bench for sure.

2 minutes ago, mr_hunt said:

back to this season   i wouldn't mind dragic as the 3rd guard....he's kind of washed but i trust him more than shake. 0for4's tea leaves have him going to the mavs though. mavs are already loaded at guard and would @probably cut trey burke to make room for dragic...so then maybe burke is an option.    

 

 

It's been rumored he was going to Dallas for a while.  He and Doncic are tight from playing together in the Olympics.

1 minute ago, Shepard Wong said:

Sixers twitter has been pretty funny today.  Tons of people digging up old tweets from talking heads saying the 6ers were crazy not to dump Simmons for guys like Brogdon and LeVert while you also have tons of people trying to convince JJ Reddick to come out of retirement.

It's nice to see 6ers fans happy about the team for the first time since the Hawks series.

 

 

I would have been just as happy with a Brogdon and LeVert deal, and much more comfortable with the team's future. I dont know where we go from here especially after a Harden extension.

I like the trade for this year, but Im kind of hoping its just a stepping stone for a superstar who is actually in his prime.

1 minute ago, therealdawk said:

Yeah I noticed that.  SAS and Bayless say shock jock stuff for reaction so that didn't surprise me too much.  But then you had guys like Clinton Yates and even Bob Ryan, who is a basketball guru, saying that the Nets won the deal.  Sir Charles knows what a slug Ben was.  He has said it on Mikey Miss and elsewhere but even he was lukewarm on the Sixers after the trade. 

I don't get it.  I hope that they are all wrong. 

every "analyst" on sxm nba radio is raving about how good the nets are going to be now.  

1 minute ago, HazletonEagle said:

yeah Dragic is the guy Id most want on buyout. Him and Trystan Thompson seems ideal. 

Dragic wants minutes so he either shouldnt be going to the Mavs crowded situation, or theyll be cutting a guard to make room for him. Id take just about any of their guards.

 

Doncic still has a very good PER. He still averages 1 steal a game too in limited minutes. It seems like he can still defend ok. His 3pt shooting is not great these days, but he would be a really nice guard off the bench for sure.

I don't think he's gonna be on the buyout market.  Just a hunch.

I'm not sure if this was posted but here's a billboard on 95: