I know that a two game sample is nothing and we are still getting used to Nurse’s new system. But given that we have seen Maxey take a leap a long with a small sample size of the rest of the team. What do you think we need to be considered contenders?

The Assets (players):

• Harden’s expiring
• Tobias expiring
• Melton’s expiring

The bright spots:

• We have a real coach!
• We may see a more aggressive version of Embiid. We may not need him to lead the league in scoring anymore, but if we get a more balanced Embiid, that will be better.
• Maxey will make a case for the all star team and I think this team will be better off as him being the leading scorer. I am especially saying this for the deep playoff runs.
• We actually have a decent athletic wing with Oubre!

The questions marks:

• I can’t really see Tobias having a lot of success under Nurse. I think that his best days are behind him and we are better off trading him if the return is right (more athletic wings?)
• Can Harden widen his preferred destinations? I mean, maybe playing for a team like the Bulls and getting the stats will give him better odds at getting a good deal?
• Reed and Springer, I can only see them doing better as they get more reps and learn from their mistakes.

What do we need?

• Even though Maxey has been great. Is he a closer in close games? As in, can we just give him the ball and get out of the way?
• Rebounding. We hustle, but rebounding is going to be problematic because Embiid gets rebounds due to his size, not his hustle. PJ is 100 years old and no one outside of Reed can give you that effort in rebounding and I think this will hurt us.

The Opportunities (keep in mind that we may be biased):

• IF the Bulls don’t find a decent return for Lavine, then maybe a trade for Harden where the Bulls can get off Lavine’s contract is attractive. There’s obviously going to be picks involved.
• Another Bulls offer may be Caruso for Melton’s expiring + a first?
• The Magic seem to be poised for a run. Harden can really increase that floor for that team while still giving ample opportunities for their young forwards to thrive. Isaac, Fultz, Harris are names that I wouldn’t mind having on my team.

As far as Tobias goes, I really can’t think of a team that can say “You know what we need to put us over the top? A Tobias Harris!” Unless it’s a team looking for Vet presence. Indiana, Detroit, and Atlanta maybe come to mind.

We may also let the games play out and wait for an opportunity for a disgruntled player, a team going on panic mode or a potential 3 team trade to show up.

I am keeping an eye on Orlando, Chicago, Indiana, Atlanta, Brooklyn, Sacramento, and the Clips who are under pressure to perform.

​