NBA Off-season

[Week]

The only thing the disgusts me more than two NBA threads going at once is everything related to LeBron James. He has won jack shit and is a fantastically narcissistic piece of garbage. Here's to hoping the Heat can't figure out how to fit all that ego together and then support it with a bare bones bench.

[Trebla]

heh, this will still be fun. Because unless they sign some decent talent to minimums I don't see them beating Orlando or Boston, much less the Lakers. bill Simmons nailed it on the amount of minutes these guys are going to have to play

[MercenaryChef]

my issue is lebron, wade and bosch are pretty decent dudes. it will be hard for them to treat them as villains.

[Fez]

Pretty sure I heard in Wilbon's interview of LeBron that the 3 of them have agreed to take a little less than the max deal to allow for some room for other players.

Even if they don't though, Beasley and Chalmers aren't scrubs. Also I don't totally understand how/what the mid-level exception is, but assuming it works the way I think it does, can't the Heat use that to get a decent veteran gunning for a ring? I think overall they'll be a good team.

Terrible "event", but I'll still sort of root for them. Los Suns remain my team though.

[Stone-Made-Soft]

my issue is lebron, wade and bosch are pretty decent dudes. it will be hard for them to treat them as villains.

LeBron is hardly a decent dude after bending Cleveland over on national television. It's fine that he left but the way that he exited was complete bullshit.

[Swordfish]

Lots of money going to charity. Which is good.

Personally, I like it.

This is the kind of thing you dream about if it's your team, particularly if the rumors are true that they took less to play together.

Ron Artest was a hero in the finals this year. i don't think Lebron has much to worry about imagewise provided they win.

And they will. Who doesn't love a dynasty? Even if it's just 'love to hate'?

[add-on]

Pretty sure I heard in Wilbon's interview of LeBron that the 3 of them have agreed to take a little less than the max deal to allow for some room for other players.

Even if they don't though, Beasley and Chalmers aren't scrubs. Also I don't totally understand how/what the mid-level exception is, but assuming it works the way I think it does, can't the Heat use that to get a decent veteran gunning for a ring? I think overall they'll be a good team.

Terrible "event", but I'll still sort of root for them. Los Suns remain my team though.

We had this question answered earlier in the thread. The Heat aren't eligible for the mid-level exception this year, but they will be next year.

And after this event, I don't see how you can view LeBron as anything other than a villain. He staged a nationally televised event to stab his hometown team in the back. I guess that means a little less to LeBron, who probably never fully understood the pain of the Cleveland sports fan, since he never was one.

god, what a tool.

[Fez]

I'm pretty sure that they have to deal Beasley.

Just found an article on ESPN about this very thing. link

It sounds like they'd like to trade him, but they don't actually have to.

Such is Miami’s fortune these days, though, that it can offer near-maxes to the three Team USA buddies even without finding a new home for Beasley. The Heat found that out Wednesday night, along with the rest of a grumbling league, when the NBA announced that the salary cap next season will be nearly $2 million higher than anticipated: $58 million as opposed to $56.1 million.

The latest estimates say that James, Wade and Bosh could all sign deals with a first-year salary just under $1 million less than the max if the Heat make no more moves before James makes his intentions official. Miami would have to fill out the rest of its roster with minimum-salary players, but the trio’s financial sacrifice would have been more unrealistic if the cap figure didn’t rise. Factor in the lack of state income tax in Florida and the sacrifice shrinks further.

I don't really follow the NBA in the off-season, so I didn't realize Beasley had off-the-court issues, that could motivate a trade anyway.

[Week]

And after this event, I don't see how you can view LeBron as anything other than a villain. He staged a nationally televised event to stab his hometown team in the back.

Pretty sure he stabbed them right in the front. It was pretty clear what was going on, he made no promises which was telling.

I don't really follow the NBA in the off-season, so I didn't realize Beasley had off-the-court issues, that could motivate a trade anyway.

He's had off the court issues since college.

[MercenaryChef]

LeBron is hardly a decent dude after bending Cleveland over on national television. It's fine that he left but the way that he exited was complete bullshit.

bah. he owed cleveland nothing. he was the greatest prize. this whole circus is fantastic for the business of basketball. i found the whole event to be entertaining. if cleveland wanted him why did they just offer him a max deal? why not instead offer him a smaller deal and hunt down some of those other big signings to make the cavs a team that can in the end stand against the celtics, the magic and the lakers? they instead hoped greed would keep him on their team.

i am personally excited. it is nice to see a massive shakeup and energizing of basketball.

[Swordfish]

Pretty sure he stabbed them right in the front. It was pretty clear what was going on, he made no promises which was telling.

And what did he really owe them? They drafted him, he played out his contract. His obligation to them is over.

It's not like the teams display a lot of loyalty to the players.

[add-on]

And they will. Who doesn't love a dynasty? Even if it's just 'love to hate'?

That really, really remains to be seen. NBA Playoffs series are decided by matchups, not superstars. Orlando beat Cleveland two years ago because Dwight Howard destroyed them in the pick n roll. Boston beat Orlando this year because Kendrick Perkins ate Howard's lunch all series. LA won game 7 of the Finals despite a clunker from Kobe because the absence of Perkins let the Lakers grab what felt like every single offensive board.

The question you have to ask to figure out the Heat's chance to win a championship next year is, 'just who the fuck is Chris Bosh going to guard against LA or Orlando?'. Dwight Howard? Rashard Lewis? Pau Gasol? And with Brendan Haywood officially off the market, I don't see any available bigs who can help them out in that department. If they can't deal Beasley for one, then this team's title run will be over in the conference finals.

[MercenaryChef]

We had this question answered earlier in the thread. The Heat aren't eligible for the mid-level exception this year, but they will be next year.

And after this event, I don't see how you can view LeBron as anything other than a villain. He staged a nationally televised event to stab his hometown team in the back. I guess that means a little less to LeBron, who probably never fully understood the pain of the Cleveland sports fan, since he never was one.

god, what a tool.

boo hoo. poor cleveland. you have had the cavs, the indians, and the browns v.1 and v.2. and somehow you have put all your sporting faith on one person. ridiculous, sad and ignorant. this one person is to bring sporting titles to an otherwise depressed and castrated sports world. it is not like falling short or simply not contending is a new thing for cleveland. oh, no. the one person who was supposed to bring glory to the city when no one else could left!

at least you rock, cleveland. never forget that part. it is not a sporting title, but enjoy it. unless of course lebron is taking that also with him to miami with your naive hearts.

[add-on]

bah. he owed cleveland nothing. he was the greatest prize. this whole circus is fantastic for the business of basketball. i found the whole event to be entertaining. if cleveland wanted him why did they just offer him a max deal? why not instead offer him a smaller deal and hunt down some of those other big signings to make the cavs a team that can in the end stand against the celtics, the magic and the lakers? they instead hoped greed would keep him on their team.

Do you really feel like it's that simple?

They didn't have the cap space to sign anyone other than LeBron. They used all of it getting Jamison (a LeBron requested and approved acquisition) at the trade deadline to try to win the title this past season.

[Andriy Czarchenko]

We had this question answered earlier in the thread. The Heat aren't eligible for the mid-level exception this year, but they will be next year.

Only if there is MLE in the next CBA. It would be hilarious if after playing with scrubs next season the new CBA would force Miami to sell at least one of them for financial reasons.

[Swordfish]

That really, really remains to be seen. NBA Playoffs series are decided by matchups, not superstars. Orlando beat Cleveland two years ago because Dwight Howard destroyed them in the pick n roll. Boston beat Orlando this year because Kendrick Perkins ate Howard's lunch all series. LA won game 7 of the Finals despite a clunker from Kobe because the absence of Perkins let the Lakers grab what felt like every single offensive board.

The question you have to ask to figure out the Heat's chance to win a championship next year is, 'just who the fuck is Chris Bosh going to guard against LA or Orlando?'. Dwight Howard? Rashard Lewis? Pau Gasol? And with Brendan Haywood officially off the market, I don't see any available bigs who can help them out in that department. If they can't deal Beasley for one, then this team's title run will be over in the conference finals.

Maybe. We'll see.

The match up problems go both ways. How effective are those guys going to be guarding wade, james and Bosh all game?

At the very least, it'll be interesting.

[add-on]

And what did he really owe them? They drafted him, he played out his contract. His obligation to them is over.

It's not like the teams display a lot of loyalty to the players.

This isn't football Swordfish. The Cavs did show James a great deal of loyalty by going over the cap in a small market for the past several seasons to try to put a winner around LeBron. They also catered to his every wish by getting his approval of every new acquisition. He signed off on Mo Williams, Shaq and Antawn Jamison -- three players that hurt the Cavs in the Playoffs due to their ineptitude.

[Week]

And what did he really owe them? They drafted him, he played out his contract. His obligation to them is over.

It's not like the teams display a lot of loyalty to the players.

They didn't protect and coddle him and his family throughout his tenure there and through this entire process of him leaving? Teams show a ton of loyalty to stars.

[Jaxom 1974]

If it is Miami, the only way he saves his image is if he announces it in the first couple minutes and spends the rest of his one hour special giving the world's best "It's not you, it's me" speech to Cleveland.

This decision is even more ridiculous given that both the Magic and the Lakers will make mincemeat of this Heat team regardless of which minimum scrubs they sign.

Ron Artest was a hero in the finals this year. i don't think Lebron has much to worry about imagewise provided they win.

And they will. Who doesn't love a dynasty? Even if it's just 'love to hate'?

LeBron cements his image as a frontrunner who shows he has no desire to have the ball at the end of the game when it counts and is on the line. The Emperor (or King in this case) has no clothes.

[Swordfish]

This isn't football Swordfish. The Cavs did show James a great deal of loyalty by going over the cap in a small market for the past several seasons to try to put a winner around LeBron. They also catered to his every wish by getting his approval of every new acquisition. He signed off on Mo Williams, Shaq and Antawn Jamison -- three players that hurt the Cavs in the Playoffs due to their ineptitude.

Ha. Well, sure, it's hardly going the extra mile for a team to show preferential treatment to a franchise guy. that's not what I meant.

They didn't protect and coddle him and his family throughout his tenure there and through this entire process of him leaving? Teams show a ton of loyalty to stars.

Well, sure. But I didn't say stars, i said players.

Coddling Lenron is hardly an act of altruism. At least not to the level that fans seem to be expecting him to go to.

And by all reports he tried to get bosh to come so he could stay. So it isn't like he didn't try.

LeBron cements his image as a frontrunner who shows he has no desire to have the ball at the end of the game when it counts and is on the line. The Emperor (or King in this case) has no clothes.

See? That's what i'm talking about! Who doesn't love (to hate) this kind of stuff?