I was watching some clips of Tmac in Toronto....which got me watching clips of Harden in OKC...has me thinking of Drazen on Portland. A lot of these situations...
18 days after Harden was a 6th man on OKC hes on the Rockets. 60 days after hes a 6th man hes in camp on the rockets. 3 months and some days from being a backup this is his first game as a Rocket:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMvcMLwVfBk
37/12/6. Clearly hes the same human he was 90 days earlier. Nobody improves that much that quickly. But....if they KNEW he was Houston Harden you feel like they would have paid up right?
Hes a franchise player they chose to offer 14 million a season to....and Houston offered 16. He says the decision was purely financial and with an equal offer hed have stayed. Even as a 6th man. The Rockets paid him what would have been the 22nd most money per season of the 2016 free agency period just behind Fournier and Biyombo. They must have known the cap spike was coming with the TV deal being worked on. Guess they just didnt think hed be what he was.
What I wonder is this....
How is it possible to hide that much talent? And I dont mean just Harden. All the rest. Tmac too.
Guys have been landing on new teams and going from good to first ballot hall of famer for decades and it makes me wonder how the team that had them didnt know to give them the ball and get out of the way.
The Raptors knew Tmac was great to be clear. So did other teams. This was Miamis pitch to him btw....
So im not saying he came out nowhere. Im saying...when you know hes this talented...
Why was he taking 12 shots a game and off the bench for half the season?
Yes I know he didnt get along with the coach....but people around him daily? The GM and decision makers...how do they not see all this talent going to waste and fire the coach early and get someone to take advantage? VC and Tmac should have been starting together taking 18-20 shots a game each all year. He wasnt starting till March when he was taking 14 shots a game in 38 minutes so he wasnt featured then either. Day one in Orlando hes one of the best players of all time sure to go to the HOF if healthy(turns out he went without being healthy).
Its just amazing to me the talent you can keep under wraps with all these people around 24/7.
For all we know Harrell on the Clippers could be one of the GOATs waiting for someone to notice. Happens to perfectly good coaches. Rick Adleman didnt know Drazen was Drazen. He knew he could play...but he didnt know what he had really. The Nets Drazen....once he was known? Adleman would have found him minutes somehow in Portland. You would figure practice would make it clear hes too good to bench.
But it doesnt.
There is some 11ppg good player right now who if he gets the right landing spot is gonna be a big name till 2028.....and make someone look like an idiot. There always is.
So tell me....who do you think it might be?
Who is the "How did they not know what they had?" guy coming out next? Im not asking most improved player. Most of them are just young guys on the same team growing into their games. Im wondering who the next guy is who is gonna go from "OK...hes pretty good" to superstar the moment some team lets him go for it.
Think Oladipo style.
Who should I be paying extra attention to now?