Sept 29, 2023

GM vs. Dame — Harden update — Key NBA dates

September 29, 2023

Fri, Sept 29th, 2023

  The Opening Tip

  • Jrue Holiday had some iconic moments with the Bucks 

  • A very important update on the James Harden standoff

  • Actual basketball begins soon

 1. Blazers GM Joe Cronin simply said ‘no’    

Two days after the trade that sent Dame Lillard to Milwaukee, there are 28 other GMs secretly worshiping the altar of Blazers GM Joe Cronin.  

  • Cronin is, perhaps, the first head exec in this era to be told by a star player and his agent that the star wants to be traded to a specific team and, rather than sullenly oblige, actually say ‘no.’ 

  • We know this for fact, because B/R’s Chris Haynes dropped a piece last night from Dame’s side, which ultimately painted Cronin as someone uninterested in being bullied.

  • Whether or not that led to a better return for Dame than what Miami offered will be up for debate for years to come.

From the article … Dame apparently tried to play both sides: 

‘Lillard then said if a deal couldn't be worked out with the Heat, he would prefer to rescind his trade request and return to the Trail Blazers.Cronin's response to the seven-time All-Star was that there was no coming back. Lillard was shocked, sources said.’

(It sounds like these guys aren’t used to not getting their way.)Also … His agent did indeed try to scare other teams off:  

‘Portland made it clear through the media it would take the best offer for Lillard and wouldn't be limited to just Miami. In return, Lillard's agent, Aaron Goodwin, relayed to teams that Lillard would not be content if Portland traded him to a team other than Miami.’

(If your strategy as an agent is to sabotage any leverage your star’s current team has, you should probably be prepared for the possibility that the team might not like that.)Last thing … they left Dame on read: 

‘For approximately three weeks, calls and texts to the Trail Blazers from Lillard and Goodwin went unanswered.’

(That’s a little bit funny.) The end result of this saga is two-fold: 

  1. Dame gets to play on a title contender with a generational superstar

  2. Heat fans are super angry. So, you know, it can’t be all bad. 

 2. Daily GIF: Iconic  

Jrue Holiday, who was sent to Portland in the deal, had some incredible highs during his time as a Buck, including the instantly iconic steal + alley-oop in Game 5 of the 2021 Finals.Watch in-full here.

 3. Trivia time  

10 coaches have 1,000 wins. Four of them have never won a title. Name ‘em.Answer at the bottom.

4. Meanwhile... 

There is no update on James Harden’s angry holdout in Philly, other than the fact that he threw a party in Houston recently, which included the women above holding a sign of his favorite quote.

5. Actual basketball starts soon 

Key dates: 

  • Oct. 2: Media days start around the NBA

  • Oct. 5: The preseason starts

  • Oct. 24: The regular season begins with a sick double-header

  • Nov. 3:The in-season tournament, which, at worst makes regular season games a little more interesting and, at best, will create a worthwhile tradition that improves a sleepy part of the calendar, begins.

We're close.

 6.  Quick Hits 

  • The Dame-Portland standoff created some Grade-A media beef.

  • Now that Jrue Holiday is available, every contender wants him. 

  • Dame and Giannis have beenflirting with each other for a while. 

  • Jimmy Butlercalled on the NBA to investigate the Bucks for tampering, even though Butler was not-subtly alluding to Dame being on the Heat all summer. 

  • New ridiculous Kyriequote is here.

  • ‘Half the NBA’ is going to attend USC-Colorado this weekend.

 7.  Reads 

  • The Heat didn’t panic for Dame. Maybe they should have. [The Ringer]

  • Six contenders who should trade for Jrue Holiday [SI]

  • Deep dive on the Dame trade [Bill Simmons Podcast]