We’ve seen some pretty high-profile reunions in the NBA before. The one that immediately comes to mind for everyone is LeBron James rejoining the Cleveland Cavaliers and bringing them a championship.
Of course, that reunion came with a fairy tale ending. But every story isn’t a fairy tale.
And a James Harden return to the Houston Rockets certainly isn’t equipped to be that — especially not at this point. The situation just doesn’t make that much sense.
Yet, here we are. It’s an actual thing. The Athletic’s Sam Amick is reporting that Houston is expected to pursue James Harden this offseason if he declines his player option for the 2023-24 season with the 76ers.
There’s more. Harden is also said to be just as interested in a reunion with the Rockets, too.
“Sources, who like all of the other sources in this story were granted anonymity so that they could speak freely, have told The Athletic Houston is widely expected to pursue the 13-year veteran point guard if, as is expected, he declines his player option for the 2023-24 season. And even more surprisingly, sources with knowledge of Harden’s outlook say he’s as serious about a possible return now as he was when he left town.”
This really looks like a thing that could happen. Between Amick’s new reporting, Adrian Wojnarowski’s previous reporting and all the rumblings across Houston media circles, it feels like this is actually going to happen.
But let’s be clear about this: It’s a bad idea for all parties around. Let’s dive into why.
James Harden doesn't match the Rockets' timeline at all
It’s one thing to jumpstart a rebuild in its final stages by adding a star player to it. That’s what the Cavaliers did when they added LeBron James.
Kyrie Irving had already been an All-Star. Behind him were already solid complementary pieces. Beyond that, the Cavaliers had just won the NBA Draft Lottery and were set to take Andrew Wiggins in 2014.
The Rockets don’t have that foundation. The team doesn’t have an All-Star — it’s actually still tanking. It’s core players are Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun, who are just 21 and 20 years old, respectively.
Now, it could land Victor Wembanyama and things could change quickly. But, even then, he’s 19. Jabari Smith is going to be 20 next year.
It just doesn’t make a lot of sense — especially when Harden isn’t the MVP version of himself that he was when he left Houston before. Sacrificing the future for what might be two or three very good seasons of James Harden again feels like malpractice.
If Jalen Green stays, how does he develop?
John Wall said it himself earlier this season. Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. have a lot of bad habits.
“The s*** y’all getting away with over there, if you go to any other teams you’d be out of the f***** league…You wouldn’t play. I’m trying to explain it to them, because they think it’s sweet.”
There’s absolutely no way those habits get broken with James Harden in the way as the main star in Houston once again. The focus immediately shifts from development to winning, because that’s what you do when you have star players in hand.
Jalen Green and the other youngsters on the court will have to learn on the fly and that’s much harder when you’re already playing from behind.
We'd get less fun moments from Alpy Sengun
Listen. I love watching James Harden as much as the next person and there’s no doubt he’s a great player.
But if him going to Houston means much less Alperen Sengun plays like this one, then please, Rockets, pass on it.
A series of videos to show that Alperen Sengun is the best PG on the Rockets & one of the best PGs in NBA. When he initiates the offense good stuff happens. Has good handles even in traffic & a natural feel for the game. Creation for himself & others is easy and effortless to him pic.twitter.com/0Xr8v9szvg
— Max of Love Planet (@MaxOfLovePlanet) January 24, 2023
In all seriousness, Sengun is the Rockets’ best player right now and could be really good moving forward. Stephen Silas has pointed out his warts on defense (probably a bit too much), and criticisms about his game on that end of the floor are fair.
But he’s just a second-year player and is extremely talented. If you’re Houston, you just have to see where things go with him before you make a short-term pivot.
The Rockets could use their cap space to further their rebuild
Instead of dedicating $40 million to James Harden annually, the Rockets could easily use their cap room to absorb bad contracts from other teams and turn those deals into picks to further their future.
Houston only has about $60 million on their books for next season. The Rockets will have lots of cap flexibility. Using all of that to sign James Harden when there’s no guarantee the team will be able to compete for a championship doesn’t seem like the best idea.
We might not see James Harden competing for championships
Obviously, it’d be Harden’s choice here. But it’d be such a shame for him to return to Houston and not play for a championship.
Harden is awesome right now. He’s leading the NBA in assists at 10.7 per game, scoring 21.6 points per game on solid efficiency with a 62% true shooting mark.
Harden should reasonably be able to play at this level for a few more years, at least. At 32 years old, his game is aging well. He’s not getting to the rim as much, but he’s shooting career-best marks from deep and has also improved his shooting inside the arc over the last couple years.
It’d be one thing for him to return to Houston for his swan song. But that’ not what this would be — it’s far from it.
Maybe Philly isn’t the best spot for him. Maybe he’s ready to move one once again. But it’d just be a shame to see someone at that level not playing the best basketball possible.
