James Harden is Going to Recruit Kevin Durant to the Rockets
By Jason McIntyre
James Harden and Kevin Durant are not only former teammates, but they’re friends! The Rockets will have cap space this summer, like they always do because that’s what Daryl Morey does. Also, Kevin Durant must love the state of Texas, because he left the Maryland/DC area to attend the University of Texas. Add all these up, plus a couple more things, and you’ve got a story: The Rockets are going to be a factor in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes in July. From ESPN:
"The Rockets front office has talked to Harden about recruiting, and Harden is ready to play his part. “In order to put yourself as an elite team, you always got to have talent, right?” Harden said while not addressing Durant specifically. “You always got to get better and find ways to improve. That’s any team.”"
Houston … we have a chance? Besides going from the Western Conference Finals to 9th in the West this year, what’s not to love? I mean, obviously Durant is clamoring to play with Dwight Howard, right? Who isn’t?
Durant is going to have some rotten options this July: the 16-win, last-in-the-West Lakers with one of the worst coaches in the NBA; the Wizards, who went from the Eastern Conference semifinals to 10th in the East this season, and now the most disappointing team in the NBA, the Rockets.
The Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics must be loving their chances right now. If this is part of Houston’s pitch, Kevin Durant may as well just blow off the meeting:
"Selling points for the Rockets include no state income tax in Texas, ability to team up with one of the league’s best scorers in Harden, and a bigger city with more marketing opportunities compared to Oklahoma City."
As a guy who grew up on the Knicks/Lakers side of the NBA and vehemently rooting against the Celtics … I’d like to see Durant alongside the Splash Brothers.