[Pitt Gorilla]

Originally Posted by okcchief

Westbrook and Durant don't create, and get their own shots? Wow, I don't know what to say to that. What the team needs to do to win a Championship is better utilize the lineup to match teams strengths/Weaknesses and tighten up the defense. Harden is a better player at creating his shot than Martin but he was a sixth man in OKC.

Harden was the best player on the team at doing what you are saying, but he was still limited in opportunities becuase he was playing with 2 all-stars. Go back and watch some games from the last few years, and most of the time you will see him uninvolved in crunch time. Martin is a better spot up shooter than Harden, and that is mostly what Harden became with games on the line. What OKC, and everyone else needs is LeBron James not James Harden There is one team stopping them and go back and look at what he did against that team last year. The move was about sustaining a talented roster around Westbrook and Durant for a long time. I would suggest moving on or becoming a Houston fan. Nothing wrong with either option.

I'll have to assume that parenthetical notations don't show up on your computer, because I'm not sure I could have been clearer regarding Durant and Westbrook (the big 2). Harden is exactly what this team needs, in that he IS that creator (like Westbrook and Durant) for the second team. When he's not doing that, he IS that spot-up shooter for Durant and Westbrook. He gives you both in one player that meshes well with whomever is on the floor.

Thinking long term is fine, but I don't think it's ever a good idea to eschew the present when you are a team with a legitimate shot at a championship. I'm an OKC fan, but I'm not the kind that feels the need to agree with or rationalize every move Presti makes.