Stop Knocking Kevin Durant (Or Any Free Agent) For Leaving
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| Large quantities of this beverage have been imbibed recently |
Since the free agency frenzy in the NBA opened on Friday, there has been much saltiness and whining from certain corners about the amount of money that mid (and low) level free agents were signing for.
The fact that Timofey Mozgov was signed by the Los Angeles Lakers for four years and $64 million dollars was enough to bring ruination to the sport, I guess, if some in the media (and sports media in particular) are to be believed:
New-era NBA salaries could very easily make me lose considerable interest unless the entertainment value increases accordingly.— Jeff Caplan (@Jeff_Caplan) July 2, 2016
Has even one dad ever said to his kids, "Hey, let's go see Mike Conley play basketball tonight"? And he banks $153 mil. Unreal— Ian O'Connor (@Ian_OConnor) July 2, 2016
The best players in the NBA deserve to be the highest paid in sports. But the way this is playing out makes the league look like a joke.— Mike Greenberg (@Espngreeny) July 2, 2016
It will take years to make right the things that were done wrong today. There was a reasonable way to spend all this money. This wasn't it.— Mike Greenberg (@Espngreeny) July 2, 2016
I'm going to just leave this here:When those with no world-class resume make heretofore world-class $, explanation of how it's result of a bigger revenue pie doesn't resonate— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 2, 2016
Of course, that was nothing compared to the conflagration that took place when Kevin Durant announced yesterday that he was leaving Oklahoma City and joining the Golden State Warriors. I am sure that people were prepared for this and were ready to handle his departure with grace, elan, and:
— Jacob Puma (@Jay_Pums) July 4, 2016
Shit.
Oh, and of course, one of the most assholish people in sports media—a person who actually threatened Durant while on air and somehow remained employed by the network that signs his checks—had to chime in with his latest level of nonsensical babble:
Given that the insane blowhard is not alone in this line of thinking, let's attack that point head on.Don't give a damn what anyone says: weak move by KD. You go to GSW, the team who beat you, when you're already on a title contender? Please!— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) July 4, 2016
Because it is people of SAS's ilk (and fans who follow that line of thinking) that forces these moves to occur.
How so?
The obsession with rings.
Somewhere along the line, it has become all about winning a championship.
If you don't got the ring, you ain't a thing.
And after falling short in the Western Conference Finals for the thrid time in five years (this time after holding a 3-1 series lead and a five point lead in game seven of that series), after nine years with the franchise that drafted him, Kevin Durant felt that he had hit a ceiling.
When you find yourself spinning your wheels in life, sometimes you have to make a change. A radical change. Sometimes, you need to start over.
Kevin Durant didn't force a trade, He didn't threaten to hold out. He didn't (as far as we know) wreck the chemistry of the locker room. He didn't have to be amnestied.
He played out his contract, tried his best, and sought a new opportunity when the door was opened to him.
And I fail to see anything wrong with that.
But to act like trying to get a ring is a sign of villainy, or of weakness, when the structure of how players are viewed basically mandates that you have one, is akin to playing three-card monte with someone's legacy.
This isn't taking the easy way out, by the way. It's not like the title is going to be handed to the Warriors now simply because they have four of the top twenty players in the league; they still have to win the damn thing on the court. We're only about three weeks removed from them losing the title (ironically, after being up three games to one) after winning 73 regular season games.
They have had to (or will) renounce their restricted free agents to sign Durant, and will have to trade Andrew Bogut as well. Their vaunted depth will take a hit and they will become more reliant on their starting lineup.
If anyone is being cowardly in this situation, it's those who think that there is something noble in the idea of staying put in one place and not moving on if a better chance is available to you. Sometimes, you have to take the leap, and I would never begrudge anyone for doing what they think is in their best interests.
Life lessons need to be learned by many folks, and if you aren't willing to grow, or accept that sometimes people leave and you shouldn't throw a tantrum when they do, well...I can't help you.
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