I agree with this one: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_y...ug=anewformofstartreatment&prov=tsn&type=lgns A new form of star treatment By Sean Deveney - SportingNews Anyone recall how many times Michael Jordan issued a trade demand? How about Bill Russell? Magic Johnson? What? Zero? And they still were allowed to be called star players? This summer, it seems a player can't truly be a star unless he issues a trade demand. We've heard it from Tracy McGrady, Baron Davis, Peja Stojakovic and Vince Carter. They're all franchise cornerstones, players their teams have been trying to build around. In different ways and for different reasons, those teams have failed. To some extent, there is bad management involved, and a player has a right to complain about that. But if a player -- a star player and a max-contract guy especially -- is going to start pointing fingers, one of those fingers should be pointed at himself. If a player makes the foolish decision to parade around town demanding a trade, he had better realize that what he is saying to the world is: "I have failed, but I want to blame someone else." It was McGrady who started the Trade-Me Summer, and his success in being sent from the Magic to the Rockets probably inspired others. In asking to be traded from Orlando, McGrady left behind a spotty legacy -- zero appearances in the second round of the playoffs despite three postseason trips in four years. And, for a finale, last year's 21-61 debacle. The Magic did not practice hard, did not play hard and definitely did not defend hard. That includes McGrady, who was supposed to be the team's leader. Rather than sticking around for the difficult work of rebuilding, McGrady asked to go someplace where the hard work already had been done. Stojakovic followed with his trade demand after the Kings let go of his good friend Vlade Divac. Stojakovic acknowledged there was bad chemistry on the Kings, and when forward Chris Webber called the team soft this summer, it was assumed to be a shot at Stojakovic. Maybe Stojakovic should look at the facts. He certainly has been soft, starting with the wide-open airballed 3-pointer he hoisted at the end of regulation in Game 7 of the 2002 Western Conference finals. He was 3-for-12 in that game. Last season, in a Game 7 loss to the Timberwolves, it was the same thing -- Stojakovic shot 3-for-12. Shouldn't someone with intestinal fortitude be burning to come back, erase that history and win a championship by making big shots? Instead, Stojakovic just wants out. Same with Davis, whose agent is investigating deals after a rough year for the Hornets. But maybe Davis has forgotten he is supposed to be the leader. He missed 15 games with an injury. He shot just 39.5 percent, but that did not stop him from taking 20.9 shots per game, third in the league. Says one Western Conference scout, "I remember watching him one game. He would get the play from the sideline, then would go out and do whatever he wanted anyway." This from the Hornets' All-Star point guard? Isn't Davis at all accountable for what has happened to his team? The mother of all trade demands comes from Carter, who told the Toronto Star he wants out. This is a franchise that, for better or for worse, has catered to Carter's whims. In return, the franchise has gotten a player who has missed 70 games in three years, a player whose early promise as a high-flying, aggressive dunk machine never has been realized. Carter is a softie -- he is afraid to attack the rim, and as his slate of injuries gets longer, his usefulness on the court drops. Carter is supposed to be leading the team. He has played poorly, and that's not the organization's fault. It would be nice if, instead of shooting off his mouth about a trade, Carter said something like, "I'm overpaid, and I didn't play particularly well last year. Hopefully I can do a better job." Perhaps we shouldn't hold our breath.
