NBA rumors: No one, not even the 76ers want James Harden
Daryl Morey updated us on the James Harden situation during the Philadelphia 76ers media day. Morey said, "[Harden} continues to seek a trade and we're working with his representation to resolve that in the best way for the 76ers and hopefully all parties. In terms of a trade, i will continue to work on those fronts. If he's here, then, coach will work with him on the court."
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that James Harden was was not present at the 76ers' practice on Tuesday. This year, the 76ers held their training camp in Fort Collins, at Colorado State University. Harden missed media day and the opening day of training camp. However, Wojnarowski said he was told there was an expectation that Harden could arrive in Colorado and join the team as soon as October 4th.
According to Wojnarowski, "There's not a trade out there that keeps the Sixers in championship contention this season," In fact, Woj compared Harden to Ben Simmons and claimed Simmons had even more interest.
Per Woj:
"The difference between the Harden situation and the Ben Simmons' situation a couple of years ago is there were a lot of possible deals out there for Ben Simmons. You would measure them. You would look at them. What they could get. Teams in both conferences had interest in Ben Simmons. This is different. There's not widespread interest in James Harden. The Clippers are the most motivated team to give up at least a first round pick in this. Or potentially, let's say, a pick swap. I'm not saying they've offered that in this.
However, even if the Los Angeles Clippers are the most motivated, Wojnarowski explained how they are in no position to gut all their assets to do a "one-year rental" for James Harden. Considering Harden's past three exits from a team, it's a fair concern. The Clippers would be wise to carefully consider their options before pursuing Harden.
NBA rumors: Warriors' Klay Thompson changing positions
Coach Kerr spoke with reporters on Tuesday afternoon and revealed the starting lineup for the upcoming Golden State Warriors preseason game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The starting lineup featured Chris Paul, Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson, and Kevon Looney. To many's surprise, Kerr revealed Klay will play at the four. As far as different Warriors' lineups and strategies go, this could be one of many Kerr experiments we'll see this season.
"He's so physically strong. He's so used to guarding post-up players after switches. We think Klay can guard as a four this year. We'll put him in coverage where he has to defend pick-and-roll as a four. We're planning on doing that and seeing how he does."
The Athletic's Anthony Slater wrote that, "Because Wiggins is needed to defend the best small forwards in the league, Thompson will upsize and become a de facto power forward, as he did some a season ago." Coach Kerr told reporters during the Warriors' first day of training camp that, "The first order of business in camp is to re-establish our top-10 defense." Golden State's defense finished 14th in the league last season. Yet, two seasons ago, Golden State finished with the league's second-best defense.
Several smaller fours have emerged in the league, such as Grant Williams and P.J., so it shouldn't be a surprise that this trend continues. Klay Thompson is 6-foot-6 with a 6-foot-9 wingspan. He was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 2019. Overall, the trend of smaller fours in the league is likely to continue, with Klay Thompson being the latest example of that. It'll be interesting to see how this pans out for Golden State. With Thompson's skill and experience, this change in position has the potential to be very effective.
NBA rumors: Philadelphia 76ers meet Coach Prime
As previously stated, the Sixers are in Colorado and training at Colorado State University. Clearly, the hour commute didn't stop the Sixers from sitting down with the Hall of Famer turned coach. Keith Pompey reported that Coach Nick Nurse, Joel Embiid, and the Sixers headed to Boulder Tuesday for a dinner meeting with Colorado football coach Deion Sanders.
The Sixers hoped to draw inspiration from Sanders. Sanders talked about being accountable, being happy with your role, and the basketball scholarship offers he had that his coach never told him about.
Sanders said, "On our team, i got leaders and dogs, I don't have captians. I got some leaders and I got some dogs. Every dog ain't a leader and every leader ain't a dog. I don't believe in captains." He stressed the importance of knowing your role. With all the drama surrounding the Sixers this summer, this is only fitting.
Coach Sanders echoed Philadelphia's famous slogan. He said, "I like the process. I like the work that it takes to get there. I like all that. I like all those ups and downs, those ins and outs, those highs and lows. I love the darn process." This offseason, Philadelphia added Danny Green, Patrick Beverly, Kelly Oubre Jr., and Mo Bamba. Sanders spoke about these additions that should provide the team with more depth and versatility, as well as much-needed veteran leadership.
"You added some pieces," Sanders said. "And you added some pieces that you think should be the difference. But how bad do y'all want it? Straight up. You have to really look at each other and hold each other accountable. And you got to realize how bad do you really want it. Like what are you willing to do for it? What you willing to sacrifice for it? How far you willing to go for it? How hard are you willing to work for it? Because you know what it is. You know, on paper, y'all amongst the best in the business, right? But you got to put it together."
The Sixers are prepping for their first season under Nick Nurse, so hopefully Dion's words resonate. Props to the Sixers for the altitude training. After all, the road to the NBA championship officially runs through Denver.