The courtship of Anthony Davis has turned into a firestorm between small and big market franchises.
Davis is signed through next season with the Pelicans, who have no desire to trade one of the league’s most talented players. Davis has not expressed any public desire to be moved. Yet there is constant speculation about Davis getting dealt to Los Angeles to join forces with LeBron James or Boston as the final piece to its championship puzzle.
James fanned the flames this week by saying that playing with Davis would be “amazing” and “incredible.” Davis recently signed up with James’ agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, only fueling speculation of a potential trade before Davis can decline his 2020/21 player option and become a free agent.
There are tampering fines in place for players, coaches and executives regarding public courtship of players from other teams. In this instance, the league determined James’ comments did not warrant a penalty.
That has infuriated small market executives, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. It’s hard enough for those teams to possess a player of Davis’ talent. It’s become increasingly difficult to hold onto those players because of the “super-team” mentality among players, its broadcast partners and many fans.
One executive told Wojnarowski, “It’s New Orleans’ problem today, and a problem with a different player tomorrow for the rest of us. It’s open season on small markets and our players.”
That brings us to our question of the day: Do you think the league should do more to protect small-market franchises from tampering or interference regarding their star players? Or is the league better off with a few “super-teams” in major markets?
Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.
Yes. No.
No, and for a few reasons.
I’d go as far to say the NBA tries the hardest at this, and has the absolute worst results.
* the current rules that try to prevent such moves, only handicap small market teams further.
The flaw is that the rules are built around KEEPING your guy, but with every team offering the same figures, OBVIOUSLY the star is going to choose the nicer city, if all the offers are the same.
Baseball is harsh with no cap, but if an owner wants to spend, he can, for example bring Robinson Cano to the Mariners(famously). Puig to the Reds(recently).
That’s the power of free market. NBA should learn and back off the commi format.
That’s a bit of a glib interpretation of baseball. The 2 largest free agent contracts in baseball history involved two smaller market teams, Alex Rodriguez with the Rangers and Giancarlo Stanton with the Marlins. Yes, small markets teams signed them, but before those contracts were over, they were traded for pennies on the dollar to the mighty Yankees and the smaller market owners sold their teams. Even your Cano example is now back in New York. And Puig is making $11 million, he doesn’t really fit into the conversation.
I always hear this stuff, but in reality it seems like the “big markets” aren’t as powerful as they may have once been.
The Lakers have always been desirable. But outside of that. NY, Brooklyn, Chicago, Dallas, houston areally bug markets that often stuggeled to get high profile guys. …. Not sure who else is in a “big Market”.
Warriors are in a bug market too but overall talent seems pretty evenly distributed between big markets and small.
Are you referring to the sarcastic questionmark following “superteams”? lol in boldface no less.
Typo alert
Aww they fixed it. Solid, condensed commentary.
These guys think every team should be playing for a championship. The little guys can’t. Woj said before tonight’s game that next contract the NBA will give the home team an even bigger incentive to stay where they are.
That’s fair, and legal, and not surprising. . . but the current anti-tampering campaign is none of those.
Yeah the anti-tampering thing needs to change. Lakers got a new center (Chandler) for next to nothing. Not saying tampering led to that, but James is constantly recruiting players to join him. Something needs to change where that is minimized. Also, rules need to be changed on what happens when a player is released. Right now he goes to the team of his choice at a minimum contract. You see massive player movements at the break where teams pick up players at no expense.
I think available cap space and the logistics of bringing in multiple stars is more relevant than “big market vs small market” for example if the Pelicans had the cap space to sign 2 max contract FA’s this off-season they could just as easily build a “superteam” as a “big market team” — it’s one thing in a sport like baseball where there’s no hard cap. But in the NBA I really don’t think it’s as much of an issue
That’s true, but that’s only true if one team has that much space. If both the Pelicans and the Lakers (or Knicks or Nets or Clippers) had the same amount of cap space available, which do you honestly think would have the better chance of landing multiple max FAs?
Yes, there are cases like OKC where players will re-sign big deals because they like it there. But there is no way Paul George would have signed with OKC if he hadn’t been traded there and got used to the team first. He has practically said as much.
This is a consequence of having all the salary restrictions. When all 30 teams can only offer Anthony Davis the same amount of money, then of course Anthony Davis is just going to pick the coolest team. If owners don’t want this problem they should get rid of the player-salary cap (but keep the team payroll cap).
Too true pal! Really agree with you
Any small market team can be as big as it wants, see OKC. Memphis was good for a long while too. Right now Chicago and New York suck. All teams have ups and downs, stop whining.
As long as free agency exist so will superteams. If you want to take away players rights and keep stars on small markets thats really the only way. Money doesnt mean everything to players these days and winning appears to have more appeal to players marketing themselves.
Free agency plays a part, but superteams have been around longer than free agency. The Yankees in the first half of the 20th century had no free agents. The Celtics of the 50s-60s really didn’t either. They definitely manipulated the systems of the time in different ways to their advantage, but free agency was not part of it.
If Anthony Davis leaves the pelicans it’ll be because they didn’t built a championship contender in the 7+ years they had him. Not because LeBron answered a question in a press conference.
No one’s worried about Giannis leaving because the Bucks built a contender around him.
That’s right! You cannot blame LeBron for the Pelicans failings. Really hope he stays I think the city is great & deserves to have a winning team… but I am afraid this is not to be, they didn’t learn anything after loosin’ CP3, so now is time to lose AD, they might learn then… & pigs might fly too!
I’m feeling that Silver is being set upon by a cabal that have already been given favors. I’m not sure more favors are even the point. Some people just need to give up on the notion of owning other people.
I am always going to be rooting for small-market teams but I support free agency, free movement & free speech more. I’m fine with rules & contracts, but nothing has happened as bad as what Irving did. Why was his case not the eye of a storm?
I haven’t looked at the issue technically for solutions, because, IDK, it’s late? The CBA is dense, DXC hasn’t weighed in, or I am angry at one of the parties? Maybe later.
If the media asks a guy. What would it b like to play with “this guy”. And the player answers it. It’s not tampering. Tampering would b a guy telling that same media guy. Yah if we trade “these guys” for “that guy” then “that team” will take it. Now that’s tampering. Or the FO discussing contract info with an agent for “that guy” when he’s employed by another team. Also tampering. But simply saying it would be amazing to play with a certain guy is not tampering. Pop always says after games he’d like to Coach certain guys. How is that not ever been brought up as tampering?
He could always just say, “I’m not allowed to answer that question because it is considered tampering.” and move on. If someone breaks a confidence in an interview, they can and should still be held accountable for it. The media does their job by asking tough questions, but they aren’t holding a gun to your head.
Except it’s not tampering, which is “entice, induce or persuade”. James did not offer anything, pressure or make an argument.
The next step in the anti-tamper campaign is to bug his phone!
If what LBJ did is tampering then… disband Team USA… all those stars playing together & talking… come on is gotta be tampering, right? All this tampering debate is the most ridiculous one I have ever heard in my 44 years of life man.
Funny that what giannis said isn’t upsetting people