As the NBA enters the end of this season, it is the Mavericks and Celtics who finally stand on the stage of the Finals. This season, the new generation is on the top quickly, and in the first round of the playoffs, including the Lakers, Clippers, Suns, Bucks, Heat and other teams have been out, it is certain that the dominance of the legendary superstars is declining, and the new generation has the candidates to carry the banner of the league, Doncic is one, and people like Alexander and Edwards are too immature, and Tatum has become a dou who can't be supported. The Lakers and the Suns have changed coaches, the Lakers are ready to build a core lineup around thick eyebrows, and the Suns intend to retain the Big Three combination of Durant + Booker + Beal, the Clippers are the most complicated here, because George wants a big contract, and Leonard's three-year $152 million salary cut in January this year was extended early, which stuck all of George's fantasies. Of course, George could stay, or go to the Knicks or the 76ers, but where should Harden go next season?
Let's start with one detail. Woj previously confirmed that the Clippers are determined to keep Harden and George, but the Clippers will not offer George a contract bigger than a small card. Leonard's salary next season is 52.36 million US dollars, George has a player option, it is 48.79 million US dollars, normal logic and team roles, Xiaoka + George + Harden, the salary should be about 50 million + 40 million + 30 million, the sixth Powell has a salary of about 20 million US dollars, and the proportion of others is not too big. However, George's negotiations are close to breaking down, and Harden will definitely enter the free market before making a decision due to his previous 1+1 contract. But in the words of the Los Angeles media, the contract extension negotiations between Harden and the Clippers have not made any progress. The most embarrassing thing is that Harden's market in the free market this summer is destined to be very cold.
To put it bluntly, if the Clippers don't want it, the other teams won't be interested. The American media listed Harden's potential next home after leaving the Clippers, the Suns first, the Magic second, the Lakers third, and the Bucks fourth. But the teams with the most salary space this summer: Pistons 68 million salary space, 76ers 62 million salary space, Magic 53 million salary space, in addition to Jazz, Thunder, Hornets are more than 30 million US dollars, the 76ers will definitely not give Harden a contract, the Pistons will not recruit stars, and teams like the Suns, Lakers, and Bucks only have a base salary! To put it simply, Harden will certainly not lower the bar and accept a base salary for the sake of a championship! What's more, do these teams have championship competitiveness? Both Durant and James are old, and the Bucks are a second-tier team in the East at best, far inferior to the Celtics.
This season, Harden averaged 16.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game in the regular season, and averaged 21.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 8 assists per game in the playoffs, G6 scored 16 points and 13 assists in 5 of 16 games, and while playing more than 40 minutes per game, the overall shooting percentage returned to around the average of the regular season, which is already the upper limit of this stage of his career.
What is Harden's market value? When Harden first came to the Clippers, he said that in addition to the Clippers having a better foundation for a championship-winning environment, he wanted to win the next big contract for himself. Harden has the ability to control the court and ensure the team's regular season floor, and by that standard, in the words of salary expert Kate Smith, the average salary of $30 million is the upper limit. The evaluation of Harden within the Clippers is not as good as imagined, after all, in order to get Harden, the Clippers lost the depth of the forward lineup, and forced George and some other players on the team to change their style of play. Second, he has been selected as an All-Star for two consecutive years and is about to turn 35 years old, including some of Harden's previous behaviors with the Nets and the 76ers. To put it mildly, Harden doesn't deserve the top salary, or even the second top salary!
On paper, Harden has a second option, which is to insist on leaving the team as he did last year and let the Clippers carry out a sign-and-trade operation. However, the premise of signing before trading is not only that the Clippers are willing to give Harden a reasonable contract, but also that the next potential trade is willing to take over. Would the sun be willing? Even if the Suns are willing to sell Beal, Beal still has a trade veto. Even if the Lakers are willing to eat Harden, how much leverage do the Lakers need to come up with to match the salary contract? Except for the Zhan Mei combination and Russell, who may leave freely, there are a bunch of small cards left. The Clippers need stars to move into a new arena next season, and in addition to the small card, they have not all bet on Harden, including Paul and Lowry, who are about to retire from the career stage, have become hungry options for the Clippers.
To tell the truth, even if Harden subjectively gives up his goal of winning the championship and leaves the Clippers for a big contract, he can't go! On the one hand, some of Harden's behaviors in the past few years have blocked the road to the future step by step, and more and more teams are not interested in him. Of course, he can't be blamed entirely, but after all, he is an individual player, and the choice is up to the team. Ever since Harden chose to hug his thighs and join forces with Xiaoka, this ending has been hinted at. In the regular season, Harden played a supporting role, but the hard work and high data could not reflect it; In the playoffs, Harden was powerless, and he just sealed his career ceiling and salary ceiling. I can only pray that next season's small card will not drop the chain at a critical moment, at least the Clippers are still the champions on paper and the championship in the offseason.