110

dmt
post

espn
the ringer
deadspin
the stacks

goal






View current page
...more recent posts

wow. i know no one has been following the crazy nba off-season. july 1 at midnight all the free agents can begin meeting with potential suitors which starts a frenzy of deals. and oft times the focus is on the big fish available which will effect how other players are courted. this year was uniquely crazy because a new tv deal had been signed and the salary cap instantly went up 35%. so some middling players were suddenly being signed for $15 million a year and social media was not unduly shocked by the numbers. i think the cap is supposed rise significantly again next year before leveling off and this was also impacting decisions made by some of the top eschalon players. do you sign a big deal this year or go short term and sign an even bigger deal next year? also, in an effort to keep players from leaving their teams to maintain balance and so players dont bolt small markets for bright lights, big city, the incumbent team can always offer a little more money and a year longer contract. 

so all of these concerns were weighing on this years top free agent, kevin durant, along with questions of loyalty to a team and legacy and all the bullshit sports writers talk about to make themselves seem important. (i actually got a direct message from a ny sportswriter this morning, which never happens, because i mocked him for thinking that spending eight hours in a hotel lobby stalking ny knicks gm phil jackson in order to get a quote about how the knicks free agency was progressing was somehow a bold and vital use of ones time.) and he is not your average free agent but a former mvp in his prime who will probably end up a top 20 all time player. his like rarely are available is my point.

the conventional wisdom was that durant would return to oklahoma city for one more year at least to try and avenge their loss to golden state. as im sure you recall they were up 3 to 1 in the western conference final before faltering much like golden state did in their finals loss to cleveland.

but............. he went the "if you cant beat'em, join'em" route and signed with the golden state warriors moments ago. they are now beyond formidable (they won a record 73 games this past season) and anything short of a championship barring catostrophic injury will be a failure. i just read that he signed a 1 and 1 deal which means he could leave after a year but also that he can resign after a year with the bigger salary bump. 

fear not, intrepid readers. i will not leave this room until all the pertinent questions are asked and all evasive politic answers are given!


- dave 7-04-2016 12:08 pm [link] [1 comment]