Boff-o
The Mavs traded Harris and Diop for J-Kidd. So, if you didn’t know, now you know.
Moving on. The basketblogosphere gets itself in a tizzy whenever Gilbert calls in a new blog post, and this latest one contains multitudes, including some discussion of the recent trades, more on his chemical burned nutsack, and how he got the nickname Puff the Magic Dragon for reasons unrelated to smoking herb. But, the real insights come when he muses on the nature of stardom. Most people have focused on the Calderon diss and Gil’s continued obsession with his past All-Star snubs, but over here at FreeDarko, our ears perked up when he started talking about sports stardom from a fan’s perspective, in particular the line: "I’m not a Patriots fan, I’m a Randy Moss fan. I’m a player fan." Does this sound suspiciously like liberated fandom to anyone else?
Granted, being an LA native, there’s no NFL team for Gil to be geographically bound to, and he was talking about the Super Bowl, when most fans use some arbitrary reason to pick which team to root for. But, viewed alongside Lebron’s brazen display of Yankee fandom in Cleveland last year, this seems like something worth keeping an eye on.
Labels: blogs, gilbert arenas, liberated fandom, washington wizards
posted by Brown Recluse, Esq. @ 2/13/2008 03:26:00 PM
18 comments
18 Comments:
This is an interesting trade for Dallas...Harris/Diop/Stack(who is probably going to be bought out so he can go back to DAL) and 2 first rounders for Kidd? I don't see how this helps them...they're pretty weak upfront now, which is going to hurt them.
I can't decide if Dirk having to rebound and play inside more will offset the benefits of playing alongside Kidd. Dirk was the ideal Nellieball player a few years back, and now Avery's turned him in to a Spur.
See, I don't think that Gil's affinity for Moss over the Patriots is liberated fandom. I think he's more of a fan of what Moss can do as opposed to being a Randy Moss fan overall.
It's tough if not counterintuitive to be a fan (n. fanatic) of someone that has taken whole seasons off and generally seems a malcontent. Almost a person that's resigned to the fact that he's good at something he loves (basketball) and one of the greatest at what seems to be just a job.
I feel the same way about Jason Kidd. Sure, there's few things as enjoyable as a fan than when he's on the court and seeing it faster and more accurately than anyone else. In fact, it's miserable to watch the Nets play despite the highlights they produce. But, Kidd the person has a horrendous reputation replete with domestic abuse.
So no, I really don't think that there's anything liberated or enlightened about Gil's view on Moss v Pats. He, like many other people just want to see the best at what they do...do exactly that.
@evan: did you read what else Gil wrote about Moss? He clearly admires Moss's swag. Based on what he wrote on his blog, he likes Moss overall almost more than what he can do on the field. I think you may be conflating YOUR opinion of Moss with Gil's. I doubt he gives a shit about whether Moss is a "malcontent"
Silver lining for Mavs fans:
Stackhouse has already said he's returning in 30 days, and the Mavs also trade a 2nd round draft pick for Antoine Wright. I am SO happy about getting him instead of Ager.
While Harris/Kidd is a wash on numbers, the bottom line is that Harris is soft and Kidd isn't. Essentially, Other than Stack and Howard Dallas is a soft team, and this is a major toughness upgrade that should address last year's debacle. They needed a criminal element alongside Dirk in the biggest way.
It's funny that the Gasol trade precipitated both the Mavs and the Suns to mortgage their respective futures in questionable moves to grab for the title. In 3 years, the Lakers are the only team to have made such a move that still have a legitimate shot.
I can't shake the feeling that this is either the end of an era or the start of a dynasty.
Lovin' this end-of-era GState/PHX game: Stack Jack vs. STAT, indeed.
devean george blocks the trade!
the NBA: where the amazing happens
So NJ is THAT toxic, to even a guy who would probably get decent minutes before finishing his current contract, that he would nix the whole damned deal? I am nominating George's agent for Jesus.
forgot to say
the NBA: where cockblock happens
and the general consensus seems to be that this is the best thing devean george has ever done for the lakers.
The NBA is a league of stars from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
the Shaq of the MIAC baby!!
@Brendan (and whomever else may be interested):
as per Van Gundy et al. on the telecast of the PHX-GS game, apparently George is blocking it due to the fact that it will lose him a considerable amount of money under his Larry Bird Rights. (those with more contract knowledge can fill in the blanks if they'd like, i'll let the Wikipedia do the job)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_Salary_Cap#Larry_Bird_exception
I wish it was just because he wanted to pull off a dick move, that'd be so sweet.
also, I think the Shaq thing is the catalyst for me finally admitting that I think D'Antoni is a bitch. He's the new Poppovich when it comes to whining about calls. fuck that.
George isn't losing any money under his Bird rights. Dallas has the ability to pay him up to 175% of his current salary without resorting to their MLE or any other kind of exception. What are the chances of that happening now that he cockblocked their trade? That's hypothetical money he'll never see.
Oh, and I forgot to add, if he gets traded, he loses those rights. Once he becomes the property of New Jersey in a trade, he becomes a regular old free agent who needs a team to dip into an exception or cap space. The Nets would have to use one of their exceptions to resign him, or to sign and trade him. If he holds up the trade, no way Mark Cuban rewards him with a nice raise. His only play is to accept the trade, or get put on IR and mothballed.
Why does he lose the Larry Bird rights if he gets traded? I thought those rights go to the new team in a trade; i.e. the Nets can sign him to an extension at 175% if he wants. Did Van Gundy or anyone explain why the rights get lost in a trade? The Wiki entry stated that those rights go to the new team in a trade. i.e. The Heat can resign Marion if they want, even if it breaks their cap. Or the Grizzlies, if they lose their marbles, can re-sign Kwame Brown to an extension after this season at 175%. No?
It seems this is a result of one of the (probably many) esoteric bits of the NBA salary rules.
"In addition, if the player is playing under a one-year contract and will have Larry Bird or Early Bird rights at the end of the contract, he can't be traded without his consent. If consent is granted and the player is traded, then he loses his Larry Bird or Early Bird rights, and enters free agency as a Non-Bird free agent. For example, Seattle signed Vladimir Radmanovic to a one-year qualifying offer on September 21, 2005. Therefore, Radmanovic could not be traded at all until December 21, 2005. After December 21, 2005, he could only be traded if he consented to the trade (he did consent and was traded to the Clippers). He became a Non-Bird free agent with the Clippers in the summer of 2006 (and signed instead with the Lakers)."
(from http://members.cox.net/lmcoon/salarycap.htm)
In other words, apparently Devean George really could be losing potential salary in this deal, because he is playing under a one-year contract right now. If traded, he becomes a non-Bird, instead of early Bird, free agent next season, which if I understand correctly, means his salary can't be counted as an exception to the regular salary cap.
From the sound of today's rumors, I guess he's not likely to stop the trade from happening sometime soon; he just wanted his agent to be able to weigh in on it and make sure he wouldn't end up losing money from the deal or would get some other compensation. Fair enough, I'd think. It's all business for the teams, I'm sure it's business for the players too.
Wikipedia....hey, it's 85% right!
Post a Comment
<< Home