There's nothing wrong with making a mockery of the free-agency period, including the investment of time and money by all sorts of organizations (and even fans.) Boy, Stern does look really, really bad here, like he just got back from a long night in Juarez.
FOR THE RECORD: Being 'right' and being 'within your rights' are not always the same thing. Alot of foul isht happens . . . and people have the right to do it. It is the Right to be an A-hole! BP was within its rights. Which is why no one is going to jail. I am sure the coastal cities are good with that. Rocket River
if they really met in miami in november to discuss all this, i have a hard time believing they only "talked about how nice it is to be able to play together."
I don't think thats a very good comparison. Some fans got their feelings hurt. None of that is close to comparing the damage done to the economy and the environment.
Agreed, but I dont think Stern can see this story gain any traction for obvious reasons. There are some major issues at play and it would be a huge blemish on the league if he actually proceeded to conduct an investigation and reprimand personnel over this (especially considering the personnel involved in this one). The one line I couldnt understand was, "His honesty and his integrity, I think, shined through"???? Its almost comical how bizarre that line was.
If they met at dinner & someone happened to say "hey wouldn't it be nice to play on the same team", that's fine. But when they continue more meetings to discuss playing together, that's collusion. Adding to southernjustice's post, I think Stern's mouth is big enough to handle all 3 at once! :grin:
not really. When you think about the NBA world. This is a BP level event. Alot of money was spent wooing them Alot of fall out is happening Rocket River
I don't understand it. Even if they got together in November and discussed contract ideas with each other, pledged to play together, etc. how does that violate any rules?
The teams that spent money wooing them knew the risks though. There was no guarantee that they would be able to sign them. There was always the chance that someone would end up with nothing.
If I'm not mistaken, Pat Riley arranged a meeting with Jordan and Lebron when he came to Miami to play. That was the same day Lebron announced he would no longer be wearing 23, and that nobody else should wear that number out of respect for Jordan
if riley had anything to do with talking about contracts or them playing for the heat next season, then it's huge news. that's about as bad as it gets on the tampering scale.
The only possible collusion is "When did Miami know?" Did they clear cap room KNOWING that the big 3 wanted to come there, or hoping? That is the only thing I could see that would matter, and honestly, Stern is toothless against it anyway.....without evidence. Personally, I want the big 3 to NEVER win a ring.....I want to see it fall apart. DD
no one has done any investigating i'm aware of to come up with any evidence. if the jilted NY media starts putting some pressure on, i could see that changing. otherwise, this will all fade away.
what miami did was unprecedented. Gut your entire team to get spaced for three max players. That seems like a big gamble for an owner to agree too unless there is some insider trading deals being made.
Put TMZ on the job. They'll find evidence if it's there. I don't think Miami freeing up cap space is any evidence though -- tons of teams did that.
