Can GS max LeBron out? Is GS the perfect fit for him basketball wise? Yes, I'm talking about the decision he made from his personal perspective. What other perspective should he be concerned with?
If personal, then yes obviously he owes no one anything and I get that he just has to do what's best for him at the end of the day. However, KD is in the sports arena and with that comes the question of his legacy. Does KD care about this legacy? Does KD want to be remembered as one of the best to ever play? If you were to ask KD personally, I'm pretty sure the answer would be a yes and this is where his decision comes into question. If you watch interviews of all-time great players, they pretty much all state that they would never join forces with other players. They would do the exact opposite, try and beat them. I believe this is why KD's decision is looked down upon by many, the lack of competitive fervor is just not there. One defining trait of any elite athlete is their competitive fire and will to beat the best. Jordan had it, Bird and Magic had it, Kobe had it, etc. So when a player that is considered to be the 2nd best player (some would even argue he's number 1), decides to join an already historically great team, it just shouts that he has no competitive spirit to beat the best. Again, on a personal level, KD is going to do what's best for him, but when it comes to the environment that he is involved in, the narrative changes completely.
"What's good for him" is not necessarily the "best fit team" for him. It would be true if he was a role player. It would even be true if he was an over the hill star trying to win a championship before he retired. If you are supposed to be one of the greatest ever, you don't choose a team you can best "fit." Teams are supposed to fit YOU. That was my point when I defended Klay for taking a pay cut to stay with the Warriors. I think that was cool. Durant is a completely different case. A player like him should be concerned about his legacy in history, not how easy it is for him to win a chip. From the reaction of how he was viewed after the move, it was clearly not "good" for him. Of course he is free to choose whatever he likes. He didn't break any rule. But you know when you see someone who could have done greater things but chose to settle for an easier life.
Durant was my favourite player at some point after he got drafted, as soon as he signed with the Warriors (after they beated his ass, already won the chip, after they had the best season ever) i lost all the respect for him, and i'll always remember him as a coward.
NBA was temporary owner of the NOLA Hornets at the time, so they had authority to do whatever they wanted regarding that trade. Even so, this is one of those moments where Silver should have done something about it.
They shouldn't have let the cap jump like that. They knew it would create some weird things for the league. It clearly would help the stacked teams which had larger payrolls.
interest in the league has only gone up since punk ass KD made this weak move Ratings have gone up, and didn’t game 1 between us and GS just set records?
Still wouldn't be alright because he went to the team that beat him. That's a beta move. Moses was a RFA, so it's not like he had much choice in where he wanted to go. Durant was a UFA, he could have went to any team he wanted. He decided to join the bullies that were bullying him. There were 12 teams in the NBA at the time, how is this comparison even similar? Nope, it is different, you can disagree with me all you want but when you have NBA legends call it a punk move in softer words and Durant, even in his earlier years, going against it, then whatever. It's a punk move. He has all the freedom in the world to do what he wants. It still was a chump move. That's my opinion.
The nba would be growing regardless. Football is waning a bit. And baseball is baseball, hockey is hockey. The internet and video games is winning. The only sport keeping up is basketball.
He talks specifically in that article about the unique circumstances that caused that - it was basically the union rejecting any salary cap smoothing proposals once the NBA signed their big TV deal. Everyone knew years in advance that there was going to be one crazy offseason. Warriors just each positioned themselves perfectly for it by being able to offer Durant the most appealing option. It's not Durant's job to take his 2nd favorite choice for the league's benefit. And in terms of paycuts - lots of people have taken them throughout NBA history. Our own Charles Barkley did it to help Houston try to assemble a superteam (to help facilitate Pippen coming over, if i remember right?). The Spurs players did it regularly. Happens in the NFL all the time (Tom Brady, for example). Given the obscene salaries out there, players who have made a ton often will do things to give themselves more life satisfaction. It was different when great players made "only" a few million - but now even a few years contract will set any of these guys up for life, so the money is less relevant.
So now it's not about ruining the league by forming a nearly unbeatable team, but it's about going to the folks that beat you. So if not for that then it woulda been ok? Moses signed a contract to go to Philly. He chose Philly. We decided not to match his contract and receive compensation. He still chose to go to a stacked team that had just lost in the Finals. https://www.nytimes.com/1982/09/16/sports/malone-goes-to-76ers-for-caldwell-jones.html Because he chose to go to a stacked team that had lost in the Finals 3 of the past 4 years.
NBA legends are no different than anyone else - they just want to feel superior to everyone else and find reasons to do it. If Lebron or Durant joined a Rockets team in the exact same circumstances, everyone here would be talking about how amazing they are and how much they just care about winning. And if they took paycuts, it would because they cared so much about the team and were great teammates. You want to hate KD - we all get it. But don't sit here and create weird justifications why KD's circumstances are unique and only he did something bad while all the other situations are justifiable in some way.
Yes, the entire context of it stinks. As mentioned in my first post. In my first post, I said that the Celtics were also building a superteam, but that I wouldn't care about it. Again. Durant was beating the Warriors...3-1....lost to them...and then ran to join them. Could you imagine any other player doing this? That's how RFA works though. The player offered the contract signs, but in the end, the team that holds the players has the power to match the contract or let the player go. The Rockets let him go in the end and it was a mutual parting. The league had 12 teams, a quarter of them were stacked. He left a stacked team. In fact, he left a BETTER team to join a worse team I mean yeah, they lost in the finals but again, there were 12 teams and the Celtics at the time were constantly stacked with multiple HOF players.
Who defended it at the time? The only defense I commonly heard was that Golden State played a better brand of ball than Westbrook and the Thunder(i.e. less selfish). But that's not why Durant went there. He joined the Warriors because he wanted a ring to cement his legacy. He was closing in on 30, was a year removed from a foot injury that ended his season, and probably didn't want to take any chances with his next contract. So he p-ssied out, signed with a 73-win team that was a basket away from 2 straight titles, and ruined the NBA for years to come. And to that, I say screw Durant. He could've just as easily won a title with a core of himself, Westbrook, Oladipo, Adams, Roberson, Grant, and Sabonis. Hell, I might actually favor that team over the Warriors had they kept their 73-win group together. And that would be a much greater legacy. Leading the Thunder who he'd played for his entire career to an NBA title. Bringing a championship to a small market like OKC. Being the man on the best team in the league. Instead he'll always be remembered as a gravytrainer.
There seem to be plenty of people who defend KD on this board. BTW I completely agree with everything you just posted.
