I'd answer your question, but I'm on troll watch after saying Norman Powell is better then Keon Johnson.
Just thinking about the Harden news today... I would laugh SO hard if Miami decides to trade for him. But there again, they don't have adequate resources to meet Morey's price. I don't think this would be adequate for the 76ers.... would it? Hero + Martin + '28 + '30 <-> Harden If I'm Miami, I wouldn't offer that much... but maybe they would
I do think they have easy access to the 2024 FRP by guaranteeing the 2026 FRP to OKC along with the Lakers 2025 second rounder. All of this said I don't think that Harden is what the Heat want and the Harden situation could actually accelerate Miami's acquisition of Dame. Supposedly all NBA front offices take a vacation for the first two or three weeks of August, so we might see an increase in chatter very soon and maybe an actual deal. I definitely wouldn't mind if Harden went to the Heat because then we would see which teams in the league want Dame with "Heat or bust" being eliminated. I think then we'd see a real bidding war between several teams but I still think the Heat put the best package together for Dame and we take it.
Harden isn't demanding a trade to Miami like Dame is. Harden just might have more value to Miami since he didn't declare undying love for all things that are Heat. He will most likely go wherever he is sent being on an expiring. But who knows. He is killing his value and Phillies leverage just like Dame here in Portland.
Shit! This thread almost fell off the front page. We can't stand for this crap! Must..........get.......to..............page.....................................270...............
there's some fancy writer dude that posted his trade machine dealy-bob thing that sends: Dame to Nola CJ to Clippers Powell + picks to Portland And here I spent a few days trying to tell Cronin's security team that Norman Powell is good at basketball, only to get shot down with Norm is a completely useless ball player not worth anything.
Crickets in the media … obligatory blaming of Portland by Miami sources for not talking with Miami, though even these entitlement pieces lack effort. Dog days. Mid-September interest for multi-teamers should briefly pick up. October will reveal who has patience and how badly Miami wants Lillard. And then we get to see team-Lillard leaks … not Goodwin … family, those close to Lillard ... I’m interested to see how this plays out and how Cronin shows his mettle … Tobias Harris, 31 [Embiid needs Harden gone and a shot to contend] Pascal Siakam, 29 [Toronto forwards have run their course and 3 contracts go to free agency in a year] Wendell Carter Jr, 24 / Franz Wagner (almost) 22 [Orlando wanting to win][this larger package would move Nurkic, too, and then Little for Mo Wagner, later][Hey, it’s not Miami, but Orlando is close.]
That film for the schedule the Blazers put out gave Nas way more stage time than Dame's split second cameo in street clothes on the bench just came out....that must have been a tough watch for a guy who's used to having the keys to the city wherever he goes.
He has to know that to put Dame on a box, then sell the box with the strong possibility of no Dame inside is a problem, yea? I was surprised at how artfully the marketing team handled it considering the Dame STH email after the lottery.
In the early days of the trade demand, we kept hearing about how keeping a disgruntled Dame was bad for our team and we should just move on. "We owe it to Dame." "We don't want Scoot to be burdened by all this." "The team needs to move forward with the youth movement." "How will our young guys interpret dicking around with Dame?" All that chatter has fallen by the wayside as the reality that there are no deals and there is no rush to get something done. It's just not a Seller's market in August, but it probably will be in a few months. Dame doesn't want to wait, and the Heat don't want to wait, but the Blazers....really have no incentive to rush this once you get over the above nonsense arguments. We lost Roy, Oden and Aldridge without compensation. We're not going to lose this cornerstone player without getting everything we possibly can. Not while the aftertaste of the Gobert and AD trades still linger. Meanwhile, I wonder what it's like being a member of the Miami Heat right now, where rumors have swirled around lots of different players in a Dame deal. For a team that just made it to the Finals, it's going to be a really weird season for them until this is resolved. Miami is going into the season with a big "NBA Finalist" bullseye on their chests. They sell a lot of tickets when they win, and not many when they lose. It's a team built on sacrifice and chemistry and the Dame situation has to be messing with that. It's not hard to imagine them really not doing well coming out of the gate, feeling desperate, and offering more just to save the season. We may not care about winning, but Miami definitely does. This may be the best reason to wait.
