Result of "The Decision": NBA Players Running the League

[Legacy]

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It was clear from the start, having a one-hour nationally televised program dedicated for an NBA player to declare which team he will play for next season will be a bad idea. It will affect the millions of fans of the team, it will affect the league’s reputation, but you did not expect it to affect the other players in the league.

 

Ever since LeBron James made his decision to join the Miami Heat, it seems more and more big-time players are attempting to perhaps choose where they want to play.

 

After James, you might have seen several different star players ask to be traded and not just a normal trade, but to a specific destination. Whether it was using talking to sources close to the team, talking to their own team directly or just flat out making it public, the players are putting them in position to run the league.

 

Carmelo Anthony saw the other three stars from the 2003 draft class got together, so you knew he had to do something drastic to be on a winning team. He got the Denver Nuggets front office to work on a deal to move to New York and play with the Knicks. Not only was he going to be playing in one of the biggest markets in all of sports, but he would be playing with a star big man in Amar’e Stoudemire.

 

If you think that was an unclassy move, what about former Utah Jazz point guard Deron Williams? He was reportedly getting into big conflicts with the hall of fame coach Jerry Sloan. Disrespecting a coach in any way is not the type of move you want from your star player, especially if the coach has been coaching that team since you were just starting out as a player.

 

With all the problems in the Jazz situation, Williams got traded to the New Jersey Nets, a team that will plan to move to Brooklyn soon and is expected to be another big-time media spot. Although that is the case, the Nets themselves currently do not have the pieces to be a championship contender. This brings up the big question, will Williams walk away after the season, ask for a trade prior to the deadline or tough it out and try to build a contender with the Nets?

 

With the way the NBA is today do not be surprised to see him wearing a different team’s jersey by next season. That is however, only if the Nets do not get a star player, say, Dwight Howard.

 

Howard has had tons of rumors speculating where he is going to be traded. Places like Los Angeles, New Jersey, Golden State and others have been named for a while. Dwight will basically pick where he wants to play, and that most likely looks like it will be alongside Kobe if the Magic like the pieces the Lakers offer.

 

Speaking of the Lakers, they nearly got Chris Paul on account of Paul wanting to play for them. He hated his situation in New Orleans and wanted a change of scenery.

 

What was the outcome?

 

A trade veto from David Stern. If this hadn't occurred he would be playing for the “A” Los Angeles team right now.

 

You can think all of these situations must be bad and a headache for fans of the teams and the front office. You can also think a player can do something like this if he has at least a good resume in the NBA, but you should not expect it from a player that has not even been in the league more than three seasons and just turned the legal age to drink.

 

Sacramento Kings player DeMarcus Cousins has demanded a trade and the season is not even at its halfway point yet.

 

You can slightly expect this from the star players. When a player of Cousins' stature does this you know the league is going to be in trouble. Having players dictate where they play and build “superstar” teams can be a big concern in the NBA in the near future if this continues.

 

It can also bring you back to the whole LeBron “Decision” fiasco. Is the fact that James got media attention and formed a team led by three stars the reason for the league turning like this?

 

The fact of the matter is, the Heat have yet to win a title with LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. If they win the title like they are expected to this year, you can expect the players to control where they play for a while to come.

 

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1024889-result-of-the-decision-nba-players-running-the-league

[Flash]

LeBron was a free agent. He had the right to choose where he went to play. I disagree with lumping the blame on him its not like he asked for a trade to only one team like Melo did. Deron Williams also went about this the right way. He's said he'll opt out and look at his options which is perfectly fine.

[kingfish]

I agree. Free agents can do whatever they want.

 

If the Lakers signed Dwight and D Will for the veterans minimum, I sure wouldnt mind.

[Teletopez]

If you think that was an unclassy move, what about former Utah Jazz point guard Deron Williams? He was reportedly getting into big conflicts with the hall of fame coach Jerry Sloan. Disrespecting a coach in any way is not the type of move you want from your star player, especially if the coach has been coaching that team since you were just starting out as a player.

 

Myth. They had disputes, but Sloan, D-Will, and O'Connor all denied Deron having anything to do with Sloan's leaving. Sloan's resignation had more to do with the ownership switch from Larry Miller Sr. to Jr. Miller Sr. listened more to Sloan's requests... Miller Jr. didn't re-sign Boozer, didn't match Wesley Matthews' contract offer, and didn't re-sign Korver. Basically wanted to cut costs.

Edited January 15, 2012 by Brooklyn Bound

[Built Ford Tough]

LeBron was a free agent. He had the right to choose where he went to play. I disagree with lumping the blame on him its not like he asked for a trade to only one team like Melo did. Deron Williams also went about this the right way. He's said he'll opt out and look at his options which is perfectly fine.

 

I completely agree with the fact that as a free agent he had the right to choose where he wanted to play.

 

However, I think you can put some of the "blame" on him because him making the jump to Miami to team up with Wade and Bosh is the major reason for the attention that super teams have gotten over the past year.

 

Yeah, they have always existed and anybody who says otherwise is delusional, but they were never such a hot topic until LeBron went to Miami.

 

The way I see it, the Celtics Big Three brought the concept of a super team back into the minds of players after the trades for Allen and Garnett and then LeBron took the low key rumblings from fans, media, whatever and elevated it into a full blown frenzy when he paired up with Wade and Bosh.

[Akkerman]

I`m perfectly fine with what Lebron did. I`m perfetcly fine with any free agent leaving the team that drafted him or that they played with that previous season. What I`m not fine with, is players demanding for trades to get out of town.

 

If these guys didn`t want to stay with their team, why sign a contract? In my eyes it`s not Lebron`s fault for Big time players leaving there small market teams, it`s the big time players fault. If Chris Paul, or Dwight Howard didn`t want to play for there teams this season, why did they sign a contract that would have them playing for there designated teams this season.

 

I`m a Raptors fan, and yes, Bosh leaving hurt, and I still haven`t completely recovered. But Bosh left everything on the court that year, and almost single handidly got us to the playoffs that year (half a point out I believe). Yeah we didn`t get anything for him, but atleast he played 100% his whole time in Toronto, which I respect, unlike all the players who think they`re big shots. Well, if there such big shots, why don`t they stick it out and win with the team they`re on, instead of (in my opinion) cowarding out and surrounding themselves, with other big time players.

[Flash]

Hate on the our Big 3 all you want, but they played out their deals with their respective teams and were professional about it the whole way up until The Decision.

 

I think what The Decision really did was worry these other big name players a bit because lets be real, the Magic aren't a contender and neither were the Hornets. I think Melo left a great situation to be honest. That team was a contender in the West IMO. Those guys all felt like they needed to get to a team who could compete ASAP because between Miami, Chicago's emergence and OKC and LA out west...those guys had no shot to contend.

 

That being said though, its still ridiculous and unprofessional to handcuff a team the way Melo did and how CP3 did to a lesser extent. Play out your deal and become a free agent.

[Teletopez]

In my honest opinion, it's outrageous that a player should have to feel restricted to the team that drafted him. In terms of leaving Cleveland, I COMPLETELY understand why LeBron did what he did. As the best player in the league, it's extremely tough to pass on playing with Wade and Bosh, while moving from Cleveland to the Miami weather and lifestyle. Of course, the fact that he broke a promise about not going ring-chasing and the manner in which he left Cleveland are a discussion of their own, but just the choice to switch jerseys is fine with me.

 

As for wanting out, there's a difference between requesting a trade and demanding a trade. We've barely seen the latter. I can understand the first scenario. I understood when Kidd, Melo, Paul, and Dwight all did it. They served sufficient time on their teams and preferred to be elsewhere. When it comes to handcuffing a team, you don't have to exactly name a destination to do that. Just by saying you won't sign a contract extension somewhere, you are likely eliminating that team as a possible trade destination, and eventually, it narrows down to a couple of teams anyway. But again, I don't feel like you should have to commit to the destination where you are being traded, as you're looking for what is in your best interest.

[DunkinDerozan]

I do think this could start to be a problem. I'm not too worried about "non star" players like Cousins starting a trend of any player being able to dictate where they play. Cousins isn't a very good example because he's a bit of a head case.

[Teletopez]

I do think this could start to be a problem. I'm not too worried about "non star" players like Cousins starting a trend of any player being able to dictate where they play. Cousins isn't a very good example because he's a bit of a head case.

I don't expect it to turn into a problem. If non-star players start doing it, teams may just ignore the requests as long as the player continues to put in effort, since losing that player wouldn't be as devastating. And if a team does choose to honor the request, there won't be as much of a problem with a player dictating where he plays, since receiving teams would be giving up less values for him (compared to a superstar) and wouldn't be as concerned if they lost that player in free agency the following offseason.

 

Cousins has been the only case so far, and as you said, it doesn't apply, considering all the heated moments he's had with basically the whole team leading to his frustration and subsequent trade demand.

[Flash]

Didn't Cousins come out and say he never requested a trade?

[Teletopez]

Didn't Cousins come out and say he never requested a trade?

Probably. I'm pretty sure the incident was that he got into a heated discussion with Westphal and yelled something along the lines of, "trade me now." So it was more of an angry statement at the peak of an argument.

[Flash]

Yeah Cousins is a hot head but it comes from just an absolute hatred of losing. I've had the conversation with some die-hard UK fans I know who say he's a great kid and a great teammate but he can't handle losing.

[Check my Stats]

I have absolutely no problem with a player SIGNING with a team in free agency. Once you're a free agent, do what you want. Hell, even if you request a trade that's fine, but don't pick and choose who you will be traded to. What Dwight is doing is so wrong, forcing his way to the Lakers is so wrong. If the Lakers want Dwight, gut your roster like Miami did and sign him; LA has no business trading for Dwight Howard as far as I am concerned (though I have been open to not complaining against a Pau AND Bynum deal, even though I don't think it is ideal), Orlando should be looking for a deal like the Hornets got.

 

The problem is that players are the draw for fans in this league, and they know it. The top 15 players run the league, and they know it. It's why Melo is a Knick, why CP3 is a Clipper, why LeBron is playing with his friends, etc. It shouldn't be that way, but unfortunately it just is. The best hope for "the rest of us" is to hope for some luck in the lottery.

 

Basketball players are probably the worst athletes in all of professional sports, and that's why we have to keep discussing this shit.

Edited January 16, 2012 by Check my Stats

[Teletopez]

I have absolutely no problem with a player SIGNING with a team in free agency. Once you're a free agent, do what you want. Hell, even if you request a trade that's fine, but don't pick and choose who you will be traded to. What Dwight is doing is so wrong, forcing his way to the Lakers is so wrong. If the Lakers want Dwight, gut your roster like Miami did and sign him; LA has no business trading for Dwight Howard as far as I am concerned (though I have been open to not complaining against a Pau AND Bynum deal, even though I don't think it is ideal), Orlando should be looking for a deal like the Hornets got.

Well Dwight isn't necessarily forcing his way to a certain team (maybe he is, but we don't know for sure). But he has obviously been asked by Otis, "would you sign a new deal with Team X?" and he had a right to say no and probably did for several teams. Players want to be traded to a good situation, which is why just by saying yes or no to signing an extension or new deal, they are indirectly forcing themselves to a certain team. In that aspect, I don't see anything wrong with it, although it is frustrating for the receiving team.

[Mentch]

Great article, I completely agree. Dwight is gonna decide where he wants to go, and theres not too much the Magic can do about it. Their only hope is that they do really well in the postseason or that they get some more pieces around him