NBA Offseason

[the 4th hanson bro]

Thought there would have been one of these by now, but I guess there wasn't.

So have at it, here's the place to discuss all the offseason moves/ non moves of your team and the association.

Here's a couple of LeBron toons for you.

 

[Danny99]

Well I hope Miami likes Chris Bosh. I believe he's been the problem here in Toronto. Sure he's a superstar, but he is a superstar that doesn't play well with others.

 

[Timby]

It amazes me that precisely ten years after the Bulls diced up their roster in order to sign Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill, getting utterly pantsed in the process, they have done the exact same thing (dumping Hinrich, Gordon and Salmons, losing a first-round pick, all in the name of clearing cap space) and are getting taken to the cleaners yet again. Their consolation prize is Carlos Boozer.

Is Ron Mercer available?

 

[GeorgeKirk]

LeBron is such an attention whore. He's going to announce his intentions at the beginning of a one-hour televised salute to himself, and then sit there and masturbate to his own highlights, presumably. Y'know, MJ was a douche, but he was careful not to act like a douche while the cameras were rolling. These younger guys like Kobe and LeBron, they just don't care.

 

[Timby]

LeBron and his representatives requested the airtime from ESPN, and all of the advertising revenue from that hour is being donated to charity.

 

[Scout101]

Ray Allen to reportedly resign with the Celtics, 2 years, 20 mil (2nd year holds a player option). Pretty happy with the length of contract, and not too bad on the money. Extends the "Big Three" window to 2012, when KG and Allen both finish at once now. Figured he'd end up with more years on the table somewhere else, and be gone...

 

[Starbreaker]

I don't really follow the NBA that closely, but it looks like Miami is about to be the team to beat.

 

[Jack Bauer]

Go somewhere LeBron. This whole "Where's LeBron going?" thing is totally worn out and tiresome. Time to pick a side already!

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

Bosh, James & Wade holding the league hostage with their BS.

Almost makes me hope LeBron joins the others in Miami and then they don't win shit.

The big 3 worked in Boston (at least for a while) because none of those guys was a massive superstar before they got there, so the ego clashes didn't happen.

 

[GeorgeKirk]

My gut tells me LeBron isn't going anywhere. The only thing that makes me uncertain is the fact that Cleveland hasn't tried to entice him by signing any other FAs, and if he returns to Cleveland he'll be playing on a team where the starting center is 80-year old Zydrunas Ilgauskas and the second best player is Mo Williams. In other words, he will never win a championship, ever, unless the Cavs pick up and move the the NCAA.

 

[1001001]

LeBron and his representatives requested the airtime from ESPN, and all of the advertising revenue from that hour is being donated to charity.

That's all well and good, but still....this whole thing is a vulgar exercise in Narcissism, IMHO.

I hope LeBron never wins anything.

 

[The Great Meech]

My gut tells me LeBron isn't going anywhere. The only thing that makes me uncertain is the fact that Cleveland hasn't tried to entice him by signing any other FAs, and if he returns to Cleveland he'll be playing on a team where the starting center is 80-year old Zydrunas Ilgauskas and the second best player is Mo Williams. In other words, he will never win a championship, ever, unless the Cavs pick up and move the the NCAA.

They could just buy themselves trophies and then go for a pizza party.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I don't really follow the NBA that closely, but it looks like Miami is about to be the team to beat.

The Heat are going to be a strange team - especially if Lebron signs with them (something that seems to be likely). They will have one of the best starting lineups in history, but a bench of absolute nobodies who have to sign for minimum contracts. They literally cleared their roster to sign three big players.

Honestly, as tempting as getting James is, I would have used that third max contract to get some other players instead. Wade and Bosh is a damn good team by itself.

 

[SmoothieX]

Unless they begin using a second or third ball, there's no way there will be enough shots for all of them to keep them happy.

If they all end up in Miami, it could just as easily end up as another one of those best teams money could buy 'offseason spending champions' that don't go onto win.

The best recent NBA example that comes to mind was when Gary Payton and Karl Malone went to the Lakers a few years back and they and came up short.

 

[Sheep]

I don't really follow the NBA that closely, but it looks like Miami is about to be the team to beat.

The Heat are going to be a strange team - especially if Lebron signs with them (something that seems to be likely). They will have one of the best starting lineups in history, but a bench of absolute nobodies who have to sign for minimum contracts. They literally cleared their roster to sign three big players.

Bingo. Should LeBron join Wade and Bosh, Miami won't have enough money left to get the good role players needed for a championship run. Minimum contracts aren't going to appeal to many players who will realize that their roles will be completely overshadowed by the big three.

 

[Timby]

I hope LeBron never wins anything.

Why?

He's an unfathomably great player who is set to cash in on a contract for the prime of his career. He sees an opportunity to play with two guys who are also in the absolute prime of their own careers, as well. There's great money involved, which is a pretty nice bonus.

Say you're LeBron James. You could play in Chicago (with its horribly high state income tax rate) and have Joakim Noah (basically the next Dennis Rodman, but with better hair) and Derrick Rose, who is a great player but needs a strong supporting cast, or you could go play in Miami with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.

The odds are that the Heat (who have a mid-level exception and enough cap room to sign players who aren't total goobers) will suck for a year or two, as the roster gets re-tooled.

I can understand hate for the media, especially ESPN (which just gives no fuck and will whore itself out to any superstar imaginable), but I don't see any real wrongdoing on LeBron James' part, outside of him being really, really good.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Lebron is basically turning his back on his city because he couldn't do the championship there by himself and going to a team that's entire philosophy will be to reject role players in favor of a superloaded roster. It doesn't set good examples in either case. Now I'm not saying he shouldn't win a championship, just that he's going about it the wrong way.

 

[Timby]

Cleveland is an utterly fucked team, with a retarded GM and an owner who needs to be taken out behind a shed and shot.

 

[SmoothieX]

^So he wants to take a job in a different city. Haven't we all done that before? Who cares.

I don't really follow the NBA that closely, but it looks like Miami is about to be the team to beat.

The Heat are going to be a strange team - especially if Lebron signs with them (something that seems to be likely). They will have one of the best starting lineups in history, but a bench of absolute nobodies who have to sign for minimum contracts. They literally cleared their roster to sign three big players.

Bingo. Should LeBron join Wade and Bosh, Miami won't have enough money left to get the good role players needed for a championship run. Minimum contracts aren't going to appeal to many players who will realize that their roles will be completely overshadowed by the big three.

I agree. For a solid contributing player, they will only have enough for lowball offers. Plus, you will never get your hands on the ball. Look at the two Finals teams this year. Both have their share of stars and future HOFers, but they both had great role players.

Fisher, Odom, Vujacic, 'Sheed, Perkins, etc.

 

[USS Avenger]

This is looking to be a very sad day here in Cleveland. We have had Red Right 88, The Drive, The Fumble, The Shot, The Meltdown and now it looks like we will have The Decision. We have lost our cherished football team, only to get back a sad shell of team that calls itself the Browns, but we all know it really isn't. No Cleveland team has won a championship since the Browns won in 1964. The Indians haven't won a World Series since 1948. The Cavaliers never won it all. Still we proudly display our colors and fill the arena or stadium of any team that is doing well. Even with local unemployment rates well above 10%, we always support our own. This city would EXPLODE if we ever won a title. Other team's fans may make fun of us, and say we are all rooting for a bunch of losers, but so too were all those Red Sox fans for generations, and they turned it around. If this goes the way it is looking, we here will have to dust ourselves off and move on. It will be difficult, Lebron will have embarressed us on national TV, as if we had not had that happen to us enough already. He will have ripped our hearts out and turned his back on some of the greatest, most loyal fans in America. In return, we will wish him the best and hope he wins alot of titles, and than we will once again sit and wait for next year.