Basketball from a fans perspective
Published Monday through Friday
Free Agent Frenzy
Far too many deals to cover it’s likely you are aware of the big ones. The surprise, in the past most deals were consummated over several days. These signings are still not official yet but just the fact they are done already is surprising. It appears the money was so lucrative there was no reason to play Team A against Team B. Not a trade but the Thunder acquisition of Paul George in a trade was a surprise. The fact George was traded is not surprising his destination and the Pacers received value however it seemed that could have received more.
Taps playing for Lob City
Sorry folks I’m still surprised but not shocked Chris Paul is no longer a Clipper. Yes I knew he would become a free agent but I figured he’d resign with the Clippers. Exit stage right was Paul in the trade to the Rockets, remaining in place for the home team is Blake Griffin resigning and leaving is J.J. Redick signing with the Sixers. Of course this only reflects starters, arriving in the Paul trade are Patrick Beverly, Sam Dekker, Montrezl Harrell, Kyle Wiltjer and Lou Williams. Are the Clippers still a playoff caliber team, yes that is probably the case avoiding major injuries. Is this edition of the Clipper superior to that of last season, for that answer we must adopt a wait and see.
It’s not the same sport
I was watching Time to Schein on CBS Sports Network on Friday. I turned to the channel after the program had begun; Adam Schein had someone sitting in for him and I never heard his name. The substitute co-host began a discussion on pending free agents and the amount of money they might receive. He kept saying over and over; “These guys will be making more money than Tom Brady.” Last time I checked Brady played in the NFL and not the NBA. I believe all of us realize it takes a great amount of skill to play quarterback in the NFL, in this instance I salute Brady however we have two different games.
The quarterback plays once a week versus the three games of an NBA player. Depending on the record there are even bye weeks once the playoffs began and the Patriots might skip a week of play. With adequate protection he rarely is subject to being hit in the same manner a wide receiver or running back would. I’m not trying to disparage any NFL quarterback my point is simple. Why are we comparing guys who could play 100 NBA games versus someone playing 25 games? See why it doesn’t make sense to try and compare $$$$ paid to athletes.
An NBA connection
I discovered I had a connection to an NBA player I didn’t previously realize. A long-time acquaintance asked me how I thought the Lakers would be in 2018. I gave him my thoughts and he said; “I wonder if my nephew has any interest in playing for them?” I know I had this puzzled look on my face; “Is your nephew playing in the NBA I asked?” My friend said; “Yes he’s Channing Frye.” My response; “I known your last name for a number of years but I never thought of any connection, there are plenty of Johnson’s and Smith’s and they are all not related to each other." With the statement by me Uncle Frye belly laughed.
Shared view
I’m not sure who stated it but it went something like this. I was watching someone on ESPN discussing the stories (Jackson and Chris Paul). “The NBA has a larger off-season audience than it does during regular season. Baseball and the NFL don’t dominate the airways like the NBA.” He went on to state the NBA is a 10 or 11 month news story.
