Preseason Wrap-up & Harden to the Heat Rumors

JJ talks about Miami going 1-1 during the preseason.

· Bright spots: KZ Okpala, Max Strus, and Precious Achiuwa

James Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo

· Earlier in the week Giannis Antetokounmpo signed the largest contract in NBA history. 5 years, $228M.

James Harden

· This week was very eventful on the Harden front as Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Philly was making Ben Simmons available in potential trade talks for James Harden but that they were nowhere close to a deal. As soon as he tweeted that something fell off and my suspicions were confirmed when Daryl Morey himself said that Ben Simmons was not available in any sort of trade talk and that he was an important piece of their future. Two things stand out here: 1) Whoever leaked the info knew that it was not real and it was most likely a ploy to see if they could squeeze more out of either Miami or Brooklyn. I don’t want to be seen as a homer, but Miami looks increasingly as the most likely destination for Harden. I feel like it would be a mistake for Houston to drag this out into the season as it could get messy. 2) Morey told CP# that he was not getting traded to OKC and we all know how that ended. However, it seems like there were other forces at play in that deal including Harden.

· Later on, 5 Reasons Sports reported that the inclusion of Duncan Robinson in the deal is a major sticking point for Miami as they do not want to include him in a deal. I understand why Miami would want to keep him as Robinson put together one of the greatest shooting seasons anyone’s ever had and if Harden were to come with Robinson staying, D-Rob would provide some much needed floor spacing for Harden, Butler, and Bam to operate. Coach Spoelstra has said that their depth is probably the most important thing for the team this season so I suspect that they’re not eager to empty the chest for James Harden.

· Something to take away form the Robinson report is the fact that Tyler Herro and Kendrick Nunn are probably being offered in the deal. Which makes sense given that Houston is seeking in return a young potential star and Herro as of right now seemingly fits the bill.