NBA Trade Rumors: Why James Harden to the Charlotte Bobcats Is Just a Pipe Dream

When CBS Sports' Jeff Goodman reported last Thursday that the Charlotte Bobcats were interested in dealing the No. 2 pick in the NBA draft, no one with knowledge of the situation batted an eye. Goodman went so far as to quote an anonymous source who believed Harden might be a target the Bobcats are eyeing in return for the No. 2 pick.

The team is coming off the worst season in NBA history, and losing the lottery sent sales so far in the tank that the Bobcats are offering a Domino-like "two-for-one" special on season tickets. 

In other words, the Bobcats are in dire need of a “face of the franchise” type player. And while Kentucky’s Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kansas’ Thomas Robinson (Charlotte’s two likely selections if they keep the pick) are sure-fire future NBA starters, no one is accusing them of being ticket-selling franchise cornerstones. 

Add that to the fact that the franchise just hired a coach (St. John’s assistant coach Mike Dunlap) who had a nonexistent Wikipedia page 24 hours ago and (I’m assuming) got the job by telling management he’d work for sticks of Five Gum, and you have a recipe for desperation.

To explain Oklahoma City's potential interest, I'll reference a previous piece I wrote:

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For Oklahoma City, [future luxury tax figures] are paramount as both Harden and [Serge] Ibaka become extension eligible this summer.  And, as it stands now, both are looking at figures in the $12-million-plus range if contracts stay consistent with recent trends.

If Clay Bennett decides he can stomach the luxury tax hit, he's looking at somewhere between $72 and $76 million in salary commitments for seven players (assuming players currently under contract stay with the team). 

In total, Bennett would probably be looking at an overall team cost of $85-90 million before his luxury tax hit.  

For reference, that figure would rank Oklahoma City somewhere in the top three in NBA team payrolls this season.

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OKC could delay their luxury tax apocalypse by trading Harden to Charlotte, extending Ibaka and drafting Florida guard Bradley Beal to plug into Harden's rotation spot.

Theoretically, it sounds like a perfect match. In reality, well, let's just call it unlikely—and that's being generous in the description.

First of all, the move would be as popular as Adam Carolla at a feminist rally with Thunder fans. The team would be shipping a cornerstone of one of the youngest cores to make a finals appearance for financial reasons. Filling the arena to capacity every night and being the best fans in the league isn't good enough?

Good luck selling that.

You just don't trade the best under-25 shooting guard in a league for a player who shot 34 percent from beyond the arc in college.  

This isn't a degradation of Beal, either. I'm on record as saying Beal will be an All-Star at the next level. But he couldn't successfully transition to SEC basketball. Taking a core-threatening risk of that level requires more of a guarantee.

And are we sure that this is that great of a deal for Charlotte, either?

There's no guarantee that Harden could transition to an alpha dog role. While everyone jumped on the Beard Bandwagon after Harden's brilliant play against the Spurs in the Western Conference finals, he has been a ghost in three of the four finals games and shot just 36 percent against the Lakers in the second round.  

Even if he would take "The Leap," there's nothing about the Bobcats' core that would make any desirable free agent want to stay. Harden could simply ride out the final two years of his rookie contract (including his option year) and bolt Charlotte, leaving the Bobcats' talent cupboard barren again.  

If Bobcats' management is insistent on bringing in a veteran force, they would be better off calling Memphis about Rudy Gay, who's under contract through the 2014-15 season.   

And for Oklahoma City...let's just say they have more pressing issues than their financial future right now.