2011 NBA Free Agency

[Fox]

Dwight Howard says that he will only sign an extnesion with four teams: Magic, Lakers, Nets, Mavericks

[patsox]

Delonte to the Mavs.

[Sodboy13]

Gloria James is saddened to hear he'll be a conference away now.

[CS85]

Dwight Howard says that he will only sign an extnesion with four teams: Magic, Lakers, Nets, Mavericks

I know it's his right to dictate his future location, but does this seem like a dick move to anyone else? Comes off as 6-year old stamping his feet.

[LeGooo]

I take back what I said, this offseason isn't a complete disappointment, the Warriors just signed Kwame Brown!

[TFoA]

They signed him for $7M over one year. I guess GMs are going to keep on overpaying for mediocre talent as long as they possibly can, eh?

[B-Rich]

Dwight Howard says that he will only sign an extnesion with four teams: Magic, Lakers, Nets, Mavericks

I know it's his right to dictate his future location, but does this seem like a dick move to anyone else? Comes off as 6-year old stamping his feet.

I agree, but this is the animal that is the NBA. Players are drafted, put in their time, become free agents. Prior to their initial contracts being up. STAR players can they tell everyone that they will only sign extensions with certain teams, which basically means, trade for me at your risk- I may only be a short term rental.

Why is it that in the NFL, you don't see such posturing? In the NFL, players usually fill out their contracts, and then get the best deal they can get (monetarily). Maybe it's the idea that in the NFL, with so many players and variables, true revenue sharing, a true salary cap, no guaranteed contract, you never know if a team may come out of nowhere to win a Super Bowl (Vermeil's Rams come to mind). But in the NBA, with its smaller roster/squad size, limited revenue sharing, and soft cap, we've had 2-3 free agents putting together their own all-star teams.... And it always seems that the league is made up of perennial (big market) winners, the smaller and mid-markets who get a glimpse every 5 years or so, and the anomaly of the San Antonio Spurs... The use of a playoff series rather than a one-off playoff "tournament" also seems to push this idea of the cream staying on top with the rest staying down (while making more money for the League as a whole by pulling more playoff money from fans' pockets). As an example, sure a team like the Hawks or the Kings or the Bucks or the Nuggets can win a few games in a best-of seven series. Maybe they will even win an early or semi-final round. But when was the last time you saw ANY of them in an NBA Championship, much less crowned as an NBA Champion?

[evanmaldonado]

better get a superstar and a great supporting cast to win a championship.

Stern's right that the small market teams don't have a chance, however, I don't see the Hornets on that list. Why force him to stay there then? The league is what it is.

To have a chance, get on a good team. That's the only option.

[The_Admiral]

Why is Andrew Bynum's name there?

I'm glad mediocre teams can't win multiple best-of-sevens. That's a good thing. Why do you want your playoffs to be bad?

[evanmaldonado]

Why is Andrew Bynum's name there?

I'm glad mediocre teams can't win multiple best-of-sevens. That's a good thing. Why do you want your playoffs to be bad?

At that point in time I wasn't following basketball so based off what I remember people thought he was good. The NBA's built off really good teams, and the new CBA did nothing to fix that.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

They signed him for $7M over one year. I guess GMs are going to keep on overpaying for mediocre talent as long as they possibly can, eh?

Demonstrating that the only people hurting the bottom line of the NBA owners are the NBA owners themselves. Who could the Warriors possibly have been bidding against?

Good for Kwame for taking the money, but it feels like he could clearly have been picked up for half that amount. And given his iffy production over his career, why be the team that takes a risk? Stupid.

[Billy B]

Why is Andrew Bynum's name there?

I'm glad mediocre teams can't win multiple best-of-sevens. That's a good thing. Why do you want your playoffs to be bad?

At that point in time I wasn't following basketball so based off what I remember people thought he was good. The NBA's built off really good teams, and the new CBA did nothing to fix that.

How is that a bad thing? Isn't the point of any sport to build a really good team?

[evanmaldonado]

Why is Andrew Bynum's name there?

I'm glad mediocre teams can't win multiple best-of-sevens. That's a good thing. Why do you want your playoffs to be bad?

At that point in time I wasn't following basketball so based off what I remember people thought he was good. The NBA's built off really good teams, and the new CBA did nothing to fix that.

How is that a bad thing? Isn't the point of any sport to build a really good team?

Sorry I didn't elaborate enough and threw that together when they should've been separate. It's not a bad thing at all, but with only a select few teams in the mix for the championship, the rest of the league is really hurt by it. There's no way for a Golden State or New Orleans or Cleveland to realistically compete against the top teams

[TFoA]

Nene will be staying with the Nuggets to the tune of a 5 yr/$67M deal. Considering the fact that it's come out that the Nets offered him $70M over 4 years, the Nuggets did pretty well for themselves in this deal.

[maifang]

[Lump of coal for you.]

[Lights Out]

Yet another new CP3-related rumor, from Marc Stein:

Two new names in Tuesday’s talks between Clippers and league officials representing Hornets: Mo Williams to Hornets and Trevor Ariza to LA

This might actually go through without Gordon, considering it fulfills the league's desire to move another big contract along with Paul.

[Lights Out]

LOL... now "sources" are claiming that the Lakers are miraculously back in the CP3 sweepstakes. Since the Lakers have even less assets than they did before, there's no doubt in my mind that this is just another pathetic attempt by Stern to try to extort Eric Gordon from the Clippers. This is just comical now. Give it up already, Stern.

[dfwabel]

LOL... now "sources" are claiming that the Lakers are miraculously back in the CP3 sweepstakes. Since the Lakers have even less assets than they did before, there's no doubt in my mind that this is just another pathetic attempt by Stern to try to extort Eric Gordon from the Clippers. This is just comical now. Give it up already, Stern.

Just remember who the "sources" are. They are generally other players on the involved team, agents of possibly traded players, assistant coaches, other team GMs, other team personnel close to the owner or GM, "inside" media members (team bloggers or announcers), or outside media (newspaper writers).

It is not Clipper Darrell or the "word on the street".

[Lights Out]

I don't doubt it's people close to the league saying it... I'm just pretty sure it's just another negotiation tactic from Stern.

[B-Rich]

Why is Andrew Bynum's name there?

I'm glad mediocre teams can't win multiple best-of-sevens. That's a good thing. Why do you want your playoffs to be bad?

At that point in time I wasn't following basketball so based off what I remember people thought he was good. The NBA's built off really good teams, and the new CBA did nothing to fix that.

How is that a bad thing? Isn't the point of any sport to build a really good team?

Sorry I didn't elaborate enough and threw that together when they should've been separate. It's not a bad thing at all, but with only a select few teams in the mix for the championship, the rest of the league is really hurt by it. There's no way for a Golden State or New Orleans or Cleveland to realistically compete against the top teams

I echo Maldonado's sentiments... not saying it's a BAD thing, it just that is what it is: designed to "let the cream rise to the top" and favor the stronger teams (and also to make more money ). Compare to say college basketball and its one-off tournament style of playoffs (NIT and NCAA), NFL football, even high school basketball: in those playoff systems, you have the possibility of a very good team-- maybe not the team with the best record or highest seed-- getting "hot" at the right time and going on a "playoff run": Villanova in the 1980s, Green Bay last year; the New York Giants in the 2007 season. You don't have that in the NBA-- or the NHL for that matter.

At least in the early rounds, I'd prefer a best-of-three or best-of-five series (similar to the way it was in the NBA in the past, and somewhat analogous to the MLB today). A best of seven in the finals and conference finals would still be the way to go. That'd (a)shorten the ridiculously long NBA post-season, and (b)even the field a bit.