Harkless Prepares for Breakout Year

@jdemling: Pitino says he believes Moe Harkless will play for him on Puerto Rican national team.

Adrian WojnarowskiVerified account
‏@WojYahooNBA   Orlando is trading forward Moe Harkless to Portland for a future second-round pick, league source tells Yahoo Sports.

 Needs a fresh start.  His early NBA career has been disappointing to say the least.   This is a big-boys league.  No one is going to hand you playing time.  You have to earn it..

I feel like his passive nature has hurt him. 

Should have stayed in College.

Should have stayed in College.

 Disagree.. You are only looking at it from a pro- STJ viewpoint.  He was a top half,  1st round pick after one season of college.  You have to come out.  Dumb not to in this day and age.  $$ is too good.

Quote from: isham on July 12, 2015, 07:52:40 PM

Should have stayed in College.

 Disagree.. You are only looking at it from a pro- STJ viewpoint.  He was a top half,  1st round pick after one season of college.  You have to come out.  Dumb not to in this day and age.  $$ is too good.

And its easy to forget about a 15th overall pick in the nba. If he would have stayed his sophomore he could have been a top 5 pick (see Otto Porter) and he would be a much bigger investment. Can't go wrong taking home a few mill though.

Quote from: boo3 on July 12, 2015, 08:17:35 PM

Quote from: isham on July 12, 2015, 07:52:40 PM

Should have stayed in College.

 Disagree.. You are only looking at it from a pro- STJ viewpoint.  He was a top half,  1st round pick after one season of college.  You have to come out.  Dumb not to in this day and age.  $$ is too good.

And its easy to forget about a 15th overall pick in the nba. If he would have stayed his sophomore he could have been a top 5 pick (see Otto Porter) and he would be a much bigger investment. Can't go wrong taking home a few mill though.

Could have been an 11th pick the next year too - and how does it shake out then? Just one less year of earning power.

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on July 12, 2015, 09:56:13 PM

Quote from: boo3 on July 12, 2015, 08:17:35 PM

Quote from: isham on July 12, 2015, 07:52:40 PM

Should have stayed in College.

 Disagree.. You are only looking at it from a pro- STJ viewpoint.  He was a top half,  1st round pick after one season of college.  You have to come out.  Dumb not to in this day and age.  $$ is too good.

And its easy to forget about a 15th overall pick in the nba. If he would have stayed his sophomore he could have been a top 5 pick (see Otto Porter) and he would be a much bigger investment. Can't go wrong taking home a few mill though.

Could have been an 11th pick the next year too - and how does it shake out then? Just one less year of earning power.

True but we both saw moe and Otto as freshmen. The next year Otto was nearly the national player of the year. I dont think there was gonna be anyway he was better then moe as sophomores.

The problem with the "should have stayed in college" mindset is that it is now a disadvantage in terms of draft stock to be a 22 year old senior rather than a 19/20 year old freshman/soph.

The moment Tobias was brought into Orlando, it was apparent that Moe wasn't going to have a long term future with the Magic.  He was in Jacque Vaughn's dog house for the entirety of last season, which crippled his exposure, but everyone still knows his potential at 22. When you factor in Tobias' near max deal recently, coupled with he and Scott Skiles being paired together again, Moe was really on the outs.

This is a blessing and opportunity for him, and I believe that he'll emerge with the available playing time. Portland could be the worst team in the NBA next season, and he could/should eventually beat out Al Faruq-Aminu to be the every day starter from Day 1 in a contract year.

http://espn.go.com/nba/team/depth/_/name/por/portland-trail-blazers

I'll never understand why he was in the doghouse.

The last couple of podcasts Bill Simmons did before leaving ESPN with Zack Lowe he would always mention how a team would end up fleecing the Magic for him in a trade. Welp looks like Portland did the deed. I expect nothing but a great year from him out west.

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on July 12, 2015, 09:56:13 PM

Quote from: boo3 on July 12, 2015, 08:17:35 PM

Quote from: isham on July 12, 2015, 07:52:40 PM

Should have stayed in College.

 Disagree.. You are only looking at it from a pro- STJ viewpoint.  He was a top half,  1st round pick after one season of college.  You have to come out.  Dumb not to in this day and age.  $$ is too good.

And its easy to forget about a 15th overall pick in the nba. If he would have stayed his sophomore he could have been a top 5 pick (see Otto Porter) and he would be a much bigger investment. Can't go wrong taking home a few mill though.

Could have been an 11th pick the next year too - and how does it shake out then? Just one less year of earning power.

I reality it is only one less year if he retires due to old age. If his career ends up 5-10 years or so what difference does it make when he started it.

Quote from: bball purist on July 12, 2015, 10:04:36 PM

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on July 12, 2015, 09:56:13 PM

Quote from: boo3 on July 12, 2015, 08:17:35 PM

Quote from: isham on July 12, 2015, 07:52:40 PM

Should have stayed in College.

 Disagree.. You are only looking at it from a pro- STJ viewpoint.  He was a top half,  1st round pick after one season of college.  You have to come out.  Dumb not to in this day and age.  $$ is too good.

And its easy to forget about a 15th overall pick in the nba. If he would have stayed his sophomore he could have been a top 5 pick (see Otto Porter) and he would be a much bigger investment. Can't go wrong taking home a few mill though.

Could have been an 11th pick the next year too - and how does it shake out then? Just one less year of earning power.

True but we both saw moe and Otto as freshmen. The next year Otto was nearly the national player of the year. I dont think there was gonna be anyway he was better then moe as sophomores.

It goes both ways.  The expecations are so much higher for a soph than a freshman.  Moe's was raw and his greatest NBA assets were his height/length and skill potential.  He would have really had to deliver as a soph.  I'm not saying that he couldn't.

One thing I am convinced about is that had Sampson qualified in 2011, Moe would not have been nearly as attractive of a draft pick.  Sampson is clearly the better athlete and he would have cut into Moe's stats. 

Harkless injured his ankle while practicing with the Puerto Rican national team, forcing him to fly back to Portland for further evaluation. Here's what the Puerto Rican national team's associate director Joel Katz had to say:   
"However, Katz was adamant that Harkless’ trip to Portland isn’t a guarantee that Harkless won’t play in the Olympic qualifier which begins this upcoming Monday in Mexico. 'It’s not that his participation is in doubt, but we need clearance from the Trail Blazers. Once they evaluate him, it will be determined whether he can participate in the qualifier', said Katz."

http://www.foxsports.com/nba/story/portland-trail-blazers-moe-harkless-082615

It's a gamble to go, and it's a gamble to stay.  He clearly wasn't ready to play in the league, but you can't argue with automatic money for your family when your family really needs it. He fooled me. I would never have taken him in the first round.

Not saying he shouldn't have grabbed the money - I think the kid made the right call given that he was a guarantee mid-first round pick that year -- but had Mo returned, I think he would have been a top 5/8 pick in the following season's draft.

Not saying he shouldn't have grabbed the money - I think the kid made the right call given that he was a guarantee mid-first round pick that year -- but had Mo returned, I think he would have been a top 5/8 pick in the following season's draft.

Oh I know. He could have probably gone even higher in the draft. Lavin did an excellent job bringing in talent that year. He did an equally horrible job not following through on the details to make sure that talent arrived and played. Had Jakarr, Norvelle and Garret all suited up from day 1, we would not have had two players taking 22 shots a game, and Harkless would have been just another promising freshman instead of a guy who dropped 28 in a blow out loss.

Quote from: prjohnnies on August 27, 2015, 02:17:58 PM

. . . and Harkless would have been just another promising freshman instead of a guy who dropped 28 in a blow out loss.

Excellent point. 

but had Mo returned, I think he would have been a top 5/8 pick in the following season's draft.

Or scouts would have had another year to asses his ability and he could have fallen lower. He made the right decision for him and his family.