According to a report from The Athletic, the Milwaukee Bucks are not interested in making a run for disgruntled Houston Rockets superstar James Harden.
The Milwaukee Bucks are coming off a big offseason, but have no plans to further shake up their core going into the start of the 2020-21 season.
According to a report from The Athletic’s Sam Amick ($$), the Bucks are not interested in making a run for Houston Rockets superstar James Harden who is seeking a move elsewhere. Amick’s colleague, Shams Charania, first reported earlier this month that Harden had listed the Bucks as a preferred destination as he publicly wishes for a move elsewhere.
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Whether it’s been the Chris Paul rumors, the failed Bogdan Bogdanovic deal or everything related to Giannis Antetokounmpo before he ultimately signed his supermax extension earlier this week, Amick has certainly been plugged into the Bucks organization this offseason especially.
The fact that the Bucks have pointed to the same cultural questions and concerns that Amick mentioned, just as they had done throughout the links to Paul, makes their disinterest in the one-time MVP in Harden far from a surprise.
After shaking up their core and securing the long-term future of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks are plotting their core very carefully.
Of course, there are a few things that wouldn’t exactly work in the Bucks’ favor as Harden’s dissatisfaction continues to fester down in Space City.
For starters, the asking price that the Rockets in a return for the 31-year-old is quite exorbitant, which the Bucks indirectly set after making the deal for Jrue Holiday. With most of their first round picks tied up until 2027, Milwaukee lacks the draft capital to satisfy the Rockets’ wishes as they attempt to salvage the last vestiges of the Harden era.
There’s also the matter of the friction between Harden and Antetokounmpo, which has spilled over into a feud at times since the latter has become a back-to-back Most Valuable Player. With Antetokounmpo at the center of the Bucks’ core, blueprint and future, disrupting the hierarchy they have set up at the moment is the farthest thing from the Bucks’ decision makers.
The fact that Milwaukee made no real effort in chasing someone of Paul’s caliber for those very reasons extends to not making a play for Harden, who comes with his own set of demands and desires as ESPN’s Tim MacMahon recently reported on.
Could missing out a superstar and one of the best scorers to ever play in the NBA be another missed opportunity in their pursuit of a championship? Maybe so.
But the Bucks have remained consistent in building their roster and future around Antetokounmpo and with his services locked down for the next five-to-six seasons, they aren’t looking to disrupt any faith and belief they have with their own generational superstar.