Sunday, October 28, 2012

The James Harden Fiasco

I wish I could write my first ever blog about one of my beloved Colorado teams. Whether it be the Rockies, Nuggets, or Broncos. Don't worry, I'm sure that I'll have plenty of opportunity to do so by the end of all this, but I don't think it'd be fair to do that when I have to admit one HUGE trade really propelled me into finally starting this blog. I've considered blogging but just never got around to it. Maybe it was laziness, a fear of getting my work slaughtered and being laughed at, or maybe I just needed that extra push. I told myself that it was always time to start recording my thoughts about sports in writing and improve on that skill, but never actually did. Well now is when I'll start. I have a lot of thoughts on all the angles that transpired last night toward the James Harden trade, and will have to attribute this blog officially being started to this trade because of the magnitude it holds. Enjoy!



In startling events on the night of October 27th, 2012, one tweet changed the course of many outlooks towards the NBA season.






Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported that James Harden, of the Oklahoma City Thunder, had been traded to the Houston Rockets. My initial reaction, similar to just about everyone's was, "What?" The implications that this one deal held were huge to the entire NBA season. Personally, I believed that this tweet had to be a mistake. Some sort of large flub that a journalist had made and would need to retract for such an atrocious story that couldn't possibly be true. But as hours went by, more and more journalists were reporting the facts: this deal had indeed been done.

Harden being shipped to the Rockets was essentially due to the fact that he had earlier rejected an estimated 4-year $52 million contract extension. He was looking for the max contract possible, and the Oklahoma City Thunder were unwilling to offer that. Once the offer was rejected GM Sam Presi, who is often heralded as being the man who put together the Championship caliber team that is the OKC Thunder, decided to react swiftly in dealing reigning 6th Man of the Year, James Harden. So what exactly does this deal entitle for both teams? Here it is:

Oklahoma City Thunder receive: SG- Kevin Martin, SG- Jeremy Lamb, 2 Future 1st Round Picks, and 1 Future 2nd Round Pick.

Houston Rockets receive: SG- James Harden, C- Cole Aldrich, SG- Daequan Cook, and SF- Lazar Hayward.

Simply put, this kind of deal is one that will make or break a lot of jobs and futures of the people and players involved. But is it the deal that destroys the Thunder and essentially opens the door wide open for the Los Angeles Lakers to take the Western Conference title? I'm not too sure yet, but it does puzzle me. What exactly are the teams getting aside from the draft picks that the Thunder received for the future?

Kevin Martin: An absolutely dynamic scorer, although it's essentially all he can do. He is a career 18.4 points per game player while shooting a solid .443 from the field and .377 from beyond the arch. The 29 year old 8-year veteran is aging quickly and not improving. Last season, Martin averaged a measly 2.8 assists per game and 2.7 total rebounds per game. From a guy who averaged 31.6 minutes per game, that isn't enough. On top of the obvious defensive liability he also is, Martin is known to be injury prone. Other than two out of eight relatively healthy seasons of his career, he has been unable to post more than 61 games a season except for once. Martin also demands a healthy contract of over $12 million this year. Although he does add a scoring edge to the Thunder roster, he isn't a center piece.

Jeremy Lamb: This is the player that is most intriguing. As a freshman he exploded onto the collegiate scene and helped lead UConn to a National NCAA title. It is safe to say that his sophomore season was a disappointing one where he only posted 17.7 points per game and 4.9 rebounds per game. Assists were essentially out of is repertoire. But what he does bring is that quick scoring off the bench capability that James Harden provided. And on top of being extremely athletic, he isn't a defensive liability with his 7-foot wing span. His problems in college was his lack of strength, reliance on the jumper, and inability to remain consistent. But with proper NBA coaching, I don't see why this guy can't become a stud and fill in where James Harden just was. Ironically he has been compared to Kevin Martin by many scouts, but hopefully he is able to surpass those predictions for the Thunder's sake.

James Harden: What can I say about this guy that hasn't already been said? He is a star player waiting to happen. All he needed was the opportunity. And by being placed on the Rocket's roster that essentially has no star, he is thrown right into that role. Now it'll just be time for Harden to put his money where his mouth is and perform to that max contract level. Without options like Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to throw out, this guy should be putting up monster numbers this season.

Outlook:
OKC: I really can't see this deal as being beneficial to their Championship run this season or for the future. I'm not overlooking the fact that they got two 1st round draft picks out of the trade, but what are they going to be looking for with those picks? Another player as dynamic and special as James Harden. Unfortunately, the chances of them finding that are very slim. Teams, like the Washington Nationals (sorry for the baseball reference), have to realize that Championship contender seasons don't just sprout up every year. The Thunder were so close, to just dump that right now is a huge mistake. But that is essentially what they are doing. On top of losing a player with the pure abilities of Harden, the team is also losing chemistry. Don't ever downplay chemistry in this league. I just don't see why this deal needed to be done right now. Why OKC couldn't have waited until the end of the season only means that they feared Harden would've struggled all season with nagging contract negotiations, but it's disappointing to see it all unfold like this.

Houston: I don't see this being a very beneficial deal for Houston either. They just signed Jeremy Lin for an absurd amount of money, and now are maxing out with James Harden. They signed Omer Asik with a hefty $15 million contract as well. Houston is slowly handcuffing itself financially and don't have the ability to buy many more key pieces that James Harden will need to win a championship. He couldn't do it with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, and Kendrick Perkins. What makes the Rockets feel like he can do it with more minutes and less fire power? I just don't know.



-Justin Nam
 @namjustin

Saturday, October 27, 2012

My Dream

I write this first post not completely knowing what I'll be doing with this blog. I have a vision in my head but I don't know if it will work out how I want.

Ever since I was in kindergarten, sports have really captivated me in a way that only a small number of things have. I would watch the Broncos, Nuggets, and Rockies (catch a Colorado theme?) constantly until I began to branch out to all sports. That captivation has grown into a great admiration and respect for all games played today. I never had an intention to take my love for sports and grow it into a career, but now that's all I want.

Yes, I had my fantasy of playing in the NBA, NFL, and MLB all at once. Juggling all that to come home to my perfect house, perfect health, and perfect life. But I realized that was all just a dream when the reality of my athletic limitations set in. But now I wish to take a different direction to stay in a topic and realm that I so love. My dream in life is now revolved in being a Sports Journalist. I know full well that the journalism field is changing rapidly every year. But I trust myself to be adaptable and useful in the future. I don't see any sort of reason to quit on my dream even if many people suggest I should.

Before leaving for school, I told many traditional adults in my community about what I'm majoring in and what I want to be. Being Asian, I received that many smug smiles and fake compliments about how my future looks. But this isn't something that I take lightly. I know the competition, the millions of kids in the world who are fighting for this job that I want, and people who have more experience than I do. This is really my first blog or column of any sorts. I remember taking tours on college campuses having peers around me asking the tour guides and journalism school counselors what they should do with their portfolios. Unfortunately, I don't have that. But I will learn, work, and fight for what I want to do. That's all I can do.

With that in mind, I'm hoping that one day I'll be able to look back at this blog and say, "Wow, that's what got me started. All the criticism, doubt about my writing abilities, nights of feeling that I'm not cut out for becoming a sports journalist, and all the poor products I put out. I needed that to grow and can look back and be proud about the development I've made." I may have 4 readers on this blog, or 4,000,000 (a very ambitious number). But I need this, maybe just to journal my own thoughts. But for any readers and all future readers, thanks for joining me on this quest and being there; whether you are a positive or negative influence to my goal.

-Justin Nam