Derek-What is James Harden's ceiling? (How good can he get/what type of player could he be like/what is the best case scenario/highest level his skills could get to)
Well first off, I am a James Harden fan, though i am not sure why. Maybe its the googly eyes and beard combo or his helter skelter almost off balance style of play. Harden has been great for the Thunder this playoffs offering a scoring punch off the bench. I'm going to offer two views on what I think his ceiling could be, obviously this is assuming he stays relatively health throughout his career.
First, is if he remains on a strong team with another legitimate star, or 2, like he is now. Although, he has excellent potential, I don't see him every being "the guy" on a great team. He will be at best scoring around 18-20 ppg, and an excellent 2nd option or 6th man. His ability to score inside, outside and in transition, his deceptively exceptional passing, decent defence and solid decision making makes him a player every team will want to get their hands on. I feel he could be a better 6th man then Jamal Crawford and Leandro Barbossa, as I believe his game has the ability to become more complete then most great 6th men. He could also find himself in the role of someone like Ginobili offering consistent offence while creating plays for others as a starter.
Secondly, if he ends up on a less talented team, or a team lacking a star, I could see him stepping into the void. If he was a teams best option I could see him putting up 25 ppg and definitely improving his assist numbers probably to at least 5-6 a game, as he is a great passer, and likely making a few trips to the All-Star game. He could score like Michael Redd for the average Bucks of 2005-07. Or maybe play a role such as, the also formerly healthy, Brandon Roy did for Portland, prior to his injuries, as both share strong scoring and playmaking abilities. Lets just hope his knees last longer then those other two guys.
Either way, I would say the bearded one has a strong NBA career ahead of him and will be sought by a lot of teams in the next few years if OKC ever lets go of him.
Evan- What do the Thunder need to do to get to the next level? Does it involve repositioning Westbrook or finding an effective big man? (Perkins sucks)
Well mostly it will take one thing; time. The team is loaded with young talent: Durant, Westbrook, Harden, Ibaka, Maynor. All guys who will just keep getting better. They also have a few solid pieces: Collison, and Sefolosha. All-Stars like Durant and Westbrook are both phenomenal talents, but are still young. Time and experience is what they need. Durant will need to step into his role as undisputed leader of his team. He needs to demand the ball late in games. His consistency will improve with time and the occasional breakdowns we saw in the playoffs will become more sporadic.
Westbrook needs to learn not to change his game for the playoffs. I felt he became less of a distributer and more of a shot taker and that hurt his team, and his shooting percentage. Too many pull-up jumpers over 2 defenders…yikes. He needs to take smarter shots and pass more, thats when he is most dangerous. This will come with time. In 2 or 3 years this guy could be almost unstoppable.
Perkins. Yes I am still scratching my head on that one. Jeff Green could stretch the defence with his shooting giving Durant and Westbrook space inside. He was athletic and young, with a lot potential. Perkins, though tough and driven, is a sack of potatoes on offence and not athletic enough to guard a lot of guys on D. He is ok as a role player, but does not fit their team in my opinion, at least not in a starting role.
It would be nice if they could find a legitimate, does not need to be exceptional, post player like free agents Mark Gasol, or Nene, neither of which I can see them acquiring without dumping off Perkins and his 6.7m contract. They do have 6.9m from Mohammed's expiring contract.
However, since they won't move Perkins, I'm sure, they could stand to find someone quicker who can shoot and give Durant and Westbrook another option offensively, someone who can spread the D and knock down shots other then Harden. They could try to get Mike Dunleavy, I know, I'm not a fan either, but he is a free agent and is great coming off screens and can shoot the 3. He is also quick if they want to go small and keep Durant at the 3 spot. Another option would be Carl Landry. Also undersized but smart enough to defend guys bigger then him and he can create a shot and hit an open jumper. This would take some of the pressure off Durant and Westbrook and give them more options to kick out the ball off drives and double teams, and make it harder for teams to focus their defence on those 2.
The Thunder don't need any major changes. Just a few smart, strategic free agent signings and draft choices should keep them on the right track. With the continued development of Harden and Ibaka they should get a lot better in the next couple years and will, in my opinion be strong contenders for some time. It will take patience and no more silly trades to reach their potential.
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