NBA Free Agency Separates the Man from the Role Player

No matter the number of superstars, there is still only one ball

With the news that Kevin Durant has signed with the Golden State Warriors, that sound you are hearing is the NBA, and their super stars dying a slow, painful death. This all started back in 2008 when the Celtics signed Kevin Garnett and traded for Ray Allen to pair the two of them with Paul Pierce. Sure, it seemed cool and they had their "big three", but something about that whole deal irked me. I didn't like that Garnett, who is one of my all time favorite players, basically threw in the towel and decided that it would be best to team up with two all stars so he could win a title. They did just that, in 2008, and went to another finals the next season.

But, this whole idea of "super teams" and having a "big three", really took off in 2010 with LeBron James and his decision to join Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh and go play for the Heat. This was a cop out in every sense of the word. LeBron knew that he wasn't going to win a title on his first go around with the Cavs. Their roster was too old, or they weren't playoff ready. He knew, if he wanted to win the title, he would have to team up with some other star players. When LeBron, Wade and Bosh played together, they played great, but my distaste for where the NBA was headed really came to a head. I mean, of course the Heat were going to contend every year because they had 3 of the 15 best players in the NBA in their starting 5. This took all the drama out of the games. We all knew that the Heat would be the 1 or the 2 seed and cruise through the east and make the finals, it was a foregone conclusion. There was no need to watch the regular season or the first couple of rounds in the playoffs, we knew the outcome. The Heat were great with their "big three". They made the finals four times, and won 2 of them, but I was growing weary of all the "power" teams. After LeBron's decision, every big time free agent or team was looking to get their own "big three", thus watering down the game even more.

The super team did not always have immediate success like the Celtics or Heat. While Kobe was still playing, the Lakers went out and traded for Dwight Howard and Steve Nash. That blew up in their face, but they still made the playoffs with their "big three". When Chris Paul got traded to the Clippers, they had him, Blake Griffin and an emerging player in DeAndre Jordan. They haven't panned out like they hoped, but they still contend every year. Two years ago when LeBron returned to Cleveland, it was under the stipulation that they would trade Andrew Wiggins for Kevin Love, thus giving LeBron another "big three" in him, Love and Kyrie Irving. Last off season, the Spurs went out and fooled everyone when they were able to land LaMarcus Aldridge. The Spurs have never star chased, but they needed an apparent to Tim Duncan, who I think I read that he is going to retire, so instead of drafting his replacement, they went out and got a proven commodity. The Spurs had their version of a "big four", with Duncan, Aldridge, Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard. Cleveland did win the title in their second year, and we are still waiting to see where the Spurs go.

You may have noticed, I have only mentioned 5 total teams so far. That's because these are the only title contending teams that have been around since the idea of teaming up stars started 8 years ago. Well, now with Kevin Durant's decision to leave the Thunder, make that 6 teams I will mention. The Warriors, who won 73 games last season, made the finals for a second straight year, would have won if not for LeBron's complaining, have Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, also have Draymond Green, they now have Kevin Durant, for at least one season. This feels like a weak, cop out move from the guy that was my favorite player in the NBA. Durant was the first option, for the most part, on a very good Thunder team. He played with Russell Westbrook, a top guard in the league. He played with one of the better centers in the NBA in Steven Adams. They went out and got Victor Oladipo, who I think will thrive in their offense. The Thunder were/could still be a very competitive team. But, Durant decided that wasn't good enough for him. He chose to be the third, sometimes fourth option on the Warriors. Durant will not be the guy with the ball in his hands when it comes to the final seconds of the important games. The Warriors will go with Curry first, Thompson second, and Draymond Green, in certain situations, will be their third option. Then, it will be Durant's turn. I hope he is okay with that. Hell, maybe that's what he wants at this point in his career. I don't mind him chasing rings, but he will not be the most important, or the second most important player on the Warriors. The fans will not be cheering loudest for him either. Those fans in the Bay Area will always love Steph way more than they will ever love Durant.

This move just stinks of what the NBA is becoming. None of the star players want a challenge anymore. These guys get beat by someone, but instead of getting better in the off season, so they can beat them, they just figure, I'll just join them. There is no competitive spirit in the NBA anymore. And that is because the new stars have been told how great they are their whole life. They've never had to face adversity, and at the first sign of it, they get scared and get out of the situation. The NBA is dying a slow and painful death with these "super teams", and I never thought that Durant would join one. I guess he is not the killer he tries to appear to be on the court. Also, if the Warriors don't win at least 70 games and the finals, with ease, this season, it should deemed a failed season. It would be preposterous if they don't breeze their way to a title.

Finally, I have changed my allegiance from the Thunder and Kevin Durant to the Timberwolves and Andrew Wiggins, maybe Karl Anthony-Towns. The Timberwolves and those two young players have gained a new fan today. Go T'Wolves!

Ty  

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He has been a longtime Timberwolves fan, dating all the way back to the summer of 2016. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.