The superstars joining forces issue

[celticsclay]

I was really disappointed when Wade, Bosh and Lebron went to Miami. Not just as a Celtics fan because it made the east tougher, but as an NBA fan. The league is more interesting to me when teams try and mix and match some talents, develop a few young guys and sign some free agents to make a successful team. Perhaps doing a trade or two to get one final big piece.  Detroit and San Antonio recently did it. Oklahoma, Utah, Orlando and Portland are in the midst of doing it and the Hawks haven't quite gotten over the edge. Now some people may claim the Celtics started this all with the big three. Perhaps there is some truth to this. However, in my opinion, and maybe I am being a homer, that was different. That was three guys in their early to mid 30's that had been on long struggling teams agreeing to sacrifice themselves and their number to play team basketball. Similarly if Steve Nash or Jason Kidd got traded to the Bobcats right now and joined forces with Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson to win a championship I would have no problem with it. What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger. Lebron started it after his owner tried everything to please him.  where does it end? Now Chris Paul all of 25 years old who has played 3.5 seasons in the NBA needs to go to a winning situation to play with another superstar?

Give me a break. Not every team can be a contender and have multiple superstars every year. The Hornets missed the playoffs one year (the year the superstar demanding the trade happened to miss half of) and we have this? Are Tyreke Evans and Stephon Curry gonna lament their teams lack of progress after this season and demand to play together? I don't have a solution but I think the idea of all of these NBA Superstars trying to to turn the league is terrible. Its like a 9 year old in a kick ball game saying he and his teammate are a package deal. I hope the new CBA puts a stop to this, cause its headed in an ugly direction.

[jdpapa3]

I can see why CP is frustrated: his ownership has been cutting costs and panicking about the luxury tax line on an annual basis it seems. he's getting antsy after seeing his buddies hook up for the Miami situation.

This whole superteam thing is going to be bad for the league. I didn't feel that way a few weeks ago, but now with CP letting this get public, I've changed my mind.

This will be awful for the 26 teams who aren't in contention every year. Fans will stop buying tickets and we'll have a season packed with 90% the equivalent of Twolves/Kings games. I don't feel it was that way this season. The West had many teams capable of going the distance: the Lakers would've entered 2 dangerous game 7's if the opposing teams had simply boxed out on final possessions. Even if you tank, that will still only give you the chance of 1 future lottery stud and it will have to be a guy the level of Duncan or Shaq. It is not good and I expect something to be done with the next CBA to stop it.

[LB3533]

All 3 of the Miami Heat 3 were not happy in their previous situations.

They found something better, more appealing to them.

Joining forces doesn't guarantee them anything. They still have an low experienced HC in Erik Spolestra.

They still need to actually play in a few games before we crown them champs or failures.

I commend these Superstars for this move to play together and see what fruits they can ripe.

If there is a superstar who passes on playing in a better situation.....good luck man and sleep in the bed you made.

[celticsclay]

I can see why CP is frustrated: his ownership has been cutting costs and panicking about the luxury tax line on an annual basis it seems. he's getting antsy after seeing his buddies hook up for the Miami situation.

This whole superteam thing is going to be bad for the league. I didn't feel that way a few weeks ago, but now with CP letting this get public, I've changed my mind.

This will be awful for the 26 teams who aren't in contention every year. Fans will stop buying tickets and we'll have a season packed with 90% the equivalent of Twolves/Kings games. I don't feel it was that way this season. The West had many teams capable of going the distance: the Lakers would've entered 2 dangerous game 7's if the opposing teams had simply boxed out on final possessions. Even if you tank, that will still only give you the chance of 1 future lottery stud and it will have to be a guy the level of Duncan or Shaq. It is not good and I expect something to be done with the next CBA to stop it.

Thank you I'll TP it up. If you think about it the league probably has the least competitive balance of the three major sports. Although baseball does have the yankees and red sox issue, it seems like there are more teams then ever with a legitmate chance of winning it. You could name any number of teams with a couple of stud pitchers that could get hot and take the series. (Ill say the yankees, sox, rays, rangers, tigers, phillies, cardinals, rockies, giants, dodgers, padres and Braves all probably think they have a shot. With the NFL I think the cycle of super bowl losers not making the playoffs the following year is evidence enough. In the NBA right now wouldn't it be really really hard to believe a team out of the celtics, magic, lakers, heat, portland will win it, maybe one or two other fringe contenders...

[celticsclay]

All 3 of the Miami Heat 3 were not happy in their previous situations.

They found something better, more appealing to them.

Joining forces doesn't guarantee them anything. They still have an low experienced HC in Erik Spolestra.

They still need to actually play in a few games before we crown them champs or failures.

I commend these Superstars for this move to play together and see what fruits they can ripe.

If there is a superstar who passes on playing in a better situation.....good luck man and sleep in the bed you made.

Kevin Garnett would be someone that passed on it multiple times. He gave the timberwolves 11 years. I wonder how he sleeps....

[Rondo_is_better]

I was really disappointed when Wade, Bosh and Lebron went to Miami. Not just as a Celtics fan because it made the east tougher, but as an NBA fan. The league is more interesting to me when teams try and mix and match some talents, develop a few young guys and sign some free agents to make a successful team. Perhaps doing a trade or two to get one final big piece.  Detroit and San Antonio recently did it. Oklahoma, Utah, Orlando and Portland are in the midst of doing it and the Hawks haven't quite gotten over the edge. Now some people may claim the Celtics started this all with the big three. Perhaps there is some truth to this. However, in my opinion, and maybe I am being a homer, that was different. That was three guys in their early to mid 30's that had been on long struggling teams agreeing to sacrifice themselves and their number to play team basketball. Similarly if Steve Nash or Jason Kidd got traded to the Bobcats right now and joined forces with Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson to win a championship I would have no problem with it. What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger. Lebron started it after his owner tried everything to please him.  where does it end? Now Chris Paul all of 25 years old who has played 3.5 seasons in the NBA needs to go to a winning situation to play with another superstar?

Give me a break. Not every team can be a contender and have multiple superstars every year. The Hornets missed the playoffs one year (the year the superstar demanding the trade happened to miss half of) and we have this? Are Tyreke Evans and Stephon Curry gonna lament their teams lack of progress after this season and demand to play together? I don't have a solution but I think the idea of all of these NBA Superstars trying to to turn the league is terrible. Its like a 9 year old in a kick ball game saying he and his teammate are a package deal. I hope the new CBA puts a stop to this, cause its headed in an ugly direction.

Absolutely agree. TP. The CBA needs to address this the same way the NHL is addressing that contract loophole.

[pearljammer10]

I love all these threads complaining about how superstars are joining forces together to win championships...

Do any of you realize that our current Celtics team started this whole thing? And in result... WON a championship??

I mean really now.

[celticsclay]

I love all these threads complaining about how superstars are joining forces together to win championships...

Do any of you realize that our current Celtics team started this whole thing? And in result... WON a championship??

I mean really now.

I addressed that potential issue in my op. If your not going to bother reading the post the conversation is based on, why bother to comment, let alone be condesending about it.

[soap07]

What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger.

This is something that NBA fans should have a problem with?

[celticsclay]

What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger.

This is something that NBA fans should have a problem with?

Yes... if you have second and third year guys start demanding trades cause their teams are rebuilding the league will have major issues. You cant have 30 winning teams and good young players are gonna get drafted onto bad teams more often then not. If the players start forcing their way to play with their superstar friends in their third year in the league while still under contract, the league could not sustain 30 teams.

[KCattheStripe]

What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger.

This is something that NBA fans should have a problem with?

Yes... if you have second and third year guys start demanding trades cause their teams are rebuilding the league will have major issues. You cant have 30 winning teams and good young players are gonna get drafted onto bad teams more often then not. If the players start forcing their way to play with their superstar friends in their third year in the league while still under contract, the league could not sustain 30 teams.

And having less than 30 teams is a problem?

[action781]

What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger.

This is something that NBA fans should have a problem with?

Yes... if you have second and third year guys start demanding trades cause their teams are rebuilding the league will have major issues. You cant have 30 winning teams and good young players are gonna get drafted onto bad teams more often then not. If the players start forcing their way to play with their superstar friends in their third year in the league while still under contract, the league could not sustain 30 teams.

And having less than 30 teams is a problem?

I've thought for some time that at least 2 franchises need to be cut.  Last year I thought cut the T'Wolves and put those players on teams that need role/bench players.  Cut the Pacers and do the same.  Send Granger to N.O.  The league quality suddenly would have been considerably improved. 

Now with the superteam in Miami, the league balance would STILL be very off.  We'd have to cut at least 2 more teams.  Eliminate New Jersey (send Harris and Lopez to NYK, Favors to Sac/Wash/Mil) and Cleveland (send Mo to Charlotte, Jamison to Boston, Varejao to Chicago).  Now we'd still have some bad teams this season and even some with very bleak futures as well (Toronto, Detroit, Golden State), but that happens and we'd have a much stronger middle pack and a more competitive top bunch.  This would make the league so much more fun to watch!

Note:  No way do I think these owners actually give up these franchises.  It's just one example of how eliminating some teams could strengthen the overall quality of the NBA.  You could do it just as well with any 4 going-nowhere franchises.

[guava_wrench]

It is hard to blame players for wanting to win when fans too have unreasonable expectations.

In every game, one team has to lose. Losses will always equal wins for the league as a whole. Even if every team does a great job with personnel, about half the teams won't make the playoffs.

[guava_wrench]

What I do have a problem is when younger and younger players start demanding their team wins now even when they are 25 or younger.

This is something that NBA fans should have a problem with?

Yes... if you have second and third year guys start demanding trades cause their teams are rebuilding the league will have major issues. You cant have 30 winning teams and good young players are gonna get drafted onto bad teams more often then not. If the players start forcing their way to play with their superstar friends in their third year in the league while still under contract, the league could not sustain 30 teams.

And having less than 30 teams is a problem?

Reread the end of the previous post. The poster was saying that 30 teams is too many if players want to play with their superstar friends. In such a situation, we should probably only have 8 or so teams.

You also can't have 30 winning teams because it is mathematically impossible, not because it is too many teams. I don't see the previous post as being a critique on the number of teams in the league, but rather a critique of expectations.

[STC]

@action781

I think the desire among fans to contract teams is usually (and unfortuantely) informed by how a particular set of franchises are doing in a particular season. If we were having this conversation in the late 1990's, there's absolutely no way anyone would suggest getting rid of the Pacers; the same goes for the Wolves in 2004, or the Nets in 2002 or 2003.

Also, usually the teams fans want to get rid of are smaller-market franchises like Indiana, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Sacramento, New Orleans, Toronto (even though it's one of the largest cities on the continent, it's still considered a backwater basketball town by many), etc. What these same fans tend to forget is that these small-market teams have solid fanbases, which is especially evident when said teams are enjoying any measure of success (hell, even Toronto fans were out in full force a few seasons ago when they had a 47-win season). Getting rid of these teams would thus, in my opinion, be almost as disastrous as the Sonics relocation two years ago.