Allowing those two to work more off-ball as catch-and-shoot and cutting threats should elevate the entire offense. Harden's passing ability could also be invaluable to the Clippers, as they've been searching for a high-end playmaker for the entire Leonard-George era. Whenever either Leonard or George miss time, Harden could slide into more of a featured scorer role. He's no longer the nightly 30-points-per-game threat that he was during his prime with the Rockets, but he had two 40-point eruptions in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Boston Celtics this year. Harden could help reduce the burden on Leonard, George and the rest of the Clippers. How much faith can the Clippers have in both of them staying healthy? Meanwhile, a late-season knee sprain sidelined George for that entire series. However, Leonard missed the entire 2021-22 season after suffering an ACL tear during the 2021 playoffs, and he tore his meniscus in Game 2 of the Clippers' first-round series against the Suns this past season. If Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are both healthy for the playoffs next April, the Clippers might feel as though they can take down anyone. And the Golden State Warriors effectively swapped Jordan Poole and future draft compensation for Chris Paul. The Los Angeles Lakers added Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, Cam Reddish and Jaxson Hayes while re-signing Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and D'Angelo Russell. The Phoenix Suns acquired Bradley Beal in a blockbuster trade with the Washington Wizards and then rounded out their supporting cast with a savvy slate of discount signings in free agency. Meanwhile, some of the Clippers' top competitors in the Western Conference made major splashes this offseason. They now have 16 players under contract, which means they're unlikely to make any major signings without clearing up their roster logjam first. Outside of re-signing Russell Westbrook and Mason Plumlee, their only move of note was trading two second-round picks to the Houston Rockets for fourth-year forward KJ Martin. The Clippers have likewise been relatively quiet this offseason. However, they also lost Georges Niang to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jalen McDaniels to the Toronto Raptors and Shake Milton to the Minnesota Timberwolves in free agency. The Sixers did sign Patrick Beverley and Mo Bamba to one-year, veteran-minimum contracts, re-signed Montrezl Harrell and matched the three-year, $23.5 million offer sheet that Paul Reed signed with the Utah Jazz. "We can’t sign a bunch of guys, then do a 3-for-1 trade and not have the roster spots." "Everything has been in a bit of a holding pattern because of (James Harden’s) trade request," a league source told Spotrac's Keith Smith. In the meantime, the uncertainty about Harden's future seems to be affecting the rest of the Sixers' offseason plans. And then maybe they get more serious about it." "They may have a James Harden who's not as enthusiastic about his return as they are. "Now, they may get to training camp, and it may look different to Philly," he said. He also noted that might change at some point, though. On Friday's edition of NBA Today, Wojnarowski said the Sixers' asking price for Harden is "exorbitant," and "teams are not engaging" with them. They've positioned themselves to have considerable financial flexibility next offseason, but they remain firmly in win-now mode because of Embiid. The Sixers are understandably reluctant to part ways with Harden after he led the league with 10.7 assists per game last season and helped fuel Embiid's MVP campaign.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |