http://www.isportsweb.com/2017/08/03...ams-can-learn/
All relationships don’t end the same. Some end after multiple volatile arguments. The type of arguments where your neighbors give you a concerned look every time they see you, and you must tell them that everything is all right, when deep down you know nothing is right.
These are the type of endings to relationships that we read about on celebrity gossip websites. They’re dramatic, explosive, and easily catch people’s attention. However, this isn’t the only way relationships end.
Other relationships can end subtly. You can’t really pinpoint when the people involved started to grow apart, but both parties know that the best days are behind them. One person might project their frustration about the situation. They may even publicly speak about the idea of being with someone else while you’re still together. The fun moments don’t feel as great as they used to, and it feels like the disappointing times occur more frequently. The relationship slowly fades away. And while one person may try their best to make things work, it’s clear that it’s best for both sides to go their separate ways, before things get uglier than they already are.
The latter situation is where the Indiana Pacers found themselves in their relationship with Paul George. The Three-Time All-NBA Team selection reportedly informed the Indiana Pacers that he wasn’t going to return to the franchise after the 2017-18 season. He expressed strong interest in returning to his hometown during 2018 free agency to play for the Los Angeles Lakers.
In other words, Paul George informed his partner that he was going to leave them. He told them exactly when he planned to leave and that there’s someone else that he wants to be with. Fortunately, for the Pacers this isn’t the first time this happened in the NBA and the Pacers had evidence of what needed to happen to protect their future.
During the 2010-2011 season, Carmelo Anthony made it clear that he wasn’t going to return to the Denver Nuggets after his contract expired. The Nuggets did their best to mend the relationship, but Melo was unwilling to sign an extension with the team. He pushed for the Nuggets to trade for him to the New York Knicks before the trade deadline.
The trade obviously went through and the Nuggets gained the proper amount of assets and players in return for a star of Melo’s caliber. This is not only why they nearly had an identical winning percentage in their first two seasons without Melo (64.1%) than their last two seasons with him (65.2%), but also accomplished their greatest regular season as a franchise since joining the NBA two seasons removed from Melo’s departure.
Like the Nuggets, the Pacers tried to mend the relationship with Paul George. During the 2016 offseason, they added key veterans (Thaddeus Young, Al Jefferson, and Jeff Teague) to the roster to surround George with the talent and experience necessary to contend at the top of the Eastern Conference. They even went as far as re-signing former Pacer, and George’s former teammate, Lance Stephenson at the end of the season for a late season, playoff push. But, the move was too little, too late.
Although he became a better player, George couldn’t replicate the team success that he had earlier in his career. The writing was on the wall; the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons, the campaigns the Pacers appeared in back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals, were the best years he was going to have with the franchise. In a league in which the teams competing for championships have or are attempting to form a big three (and in the Golden State Warriors’ case, a big four), George was the Pacers’ only star. That wasn’t going to cut it for a player that claimed competing at the highest level is his main priority, and quite simply, it wasn’t going to make him happy.
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers received Domantas Sabonis (3) and Victor Oladipo (5) from the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Paul George trade, and Pacer fans shouldn’t hold a grudge against George for feeling this way. He gave the Pacers organization his best for seven seasons. Although he didn’t make it easy for the Pacers to trade him by being so outspoken about wanting to join the Lakers as a free agent in 2018, he shouldn’t be blamed for how poorly the situation was handled. The only people that should be blamed for the poor return in the George trade are the Pacers’ executives.
Recently hired General Manager Kevin Pritchard shouldn’t have attempted to make it appear as if George’s desires to leave weren’t apparent in the first place. Pritchard, responding to George formally informing the franchise that he didn’t intend to stay with the Pacers long term, went on record stating that, “If we would have known this a few months ago, I think we could have been more prepared. Becoming public was a big issue.”
The thing is, they did know months ago. It was reported in February that barring a miraculous title contending playoff run, he intended to join the Lakers. Why else would the organization dangle his name in trade rumors before the trade deadline, rumors which furthered aggravated George, if they didn’t have a clue about his intentions? Not trading George before the deadline hurt their chances of receiving a great package in return for him. But, it wasn’t the most appalling aspect of how the Pacers handled the situation.
Plenty has been said about how little in return the Pacers received for George. And while the return was awful, the reasoning behind the trade was egregious. Nobody can make a valid argument that the Thunder’s trade package was better than the reported offers on the table from the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, or Cleveland Cavaliers. When a team trades a star away, they usually end up with the short end of the stick (i.e. the DeMarcus Cousins and Jimmy Butler trades). But, the Pacers being fleeced in the manner that they did is unacceptable.
Instead of having top draft picks or young assets on cheap contracts, the Pacers are now stuck with Victor Oladipo, whose production is unlikely to meet the expectations of his $84 million contract, and Domantas Sabonis, who progressively became worse during the 2016-17 season. The Pacers were too emotional regarding their handling of the Paul George situation and were not worried enough about doing what was best for team. They didn’t want to give George what he wanted, and were determined to send him out of the Eastern Conference. And because of it, their future appears to be lackluster, at best.
The Cleveland Cavaliers find themselves in a similar situation with guard Kyrie Irving (2) as the Pacers did with Paul George. Photo Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Other NBA teams can learn a lesson from how Pacers operated. The star players (especially in smaller markets) are the ones in control of the NBA, not the owners. Franchises need to make sure they do everything in their power to make sure their stars are happy and don’t feel the need to leave town to feel fulfilled.
This is especially important for the Cavaliers to keep in mind as they continue to sort through their Kyrie Irving drama. Although their circumstances are different, there are many similarities in how the relationship between the two star players and their franchises deteriorated. The Cavaliers must be careful; with LeBron James’ having a player option after the 2017-18 season, and signs leading many to believe he won’t return to Cleveland, it’s imperative that they handle the Kyrie situation with the maturity and keep what’s best for the organization in mind. Because if they don’t, they’ll end up just like their division-rival; hopeless and mediocre.
But then again, it isn’t like that would be new for them.
These are the type of endings to relationships that we read about on celebrity gossip websites. They’re dramatic, explosive, and easily catch people’s attention. However, this isn’t the only way relationships end.
Other relationships can end subtly. You can’t really pinpoint when the people involved started to grow apart, but both parties know that the best days are behind them. One person might project their frustration about the situation. They may even publicly speak about the idea of being with someone else while you’re still together. The fun moments don’t feel as great as they used to, and it feels like the disappointing times occur more frequently. The relationship slowly fades away. And while one person may try their best to make things work, it’s clear that it’s best for both sides to go their separate ways, before things get uglier than they already are.
The latter situation is where the Indiana Pacers found themselves in their relationship with Paul George. The Three-Time All-NBA Team selection reportedly informed the Indiana Pacers that he wasn’t going to return to the franchise after the 2017-18 season. He expressed strong interest in returning to his hometown during 2018 free agency to play for the Los Angeles Lakers.
In other words, Paul George informed his partner that he was going to leave them. He told them exactly when he planned to leave and that there’s someone else that he wants to be with. Fortunately, for the Pacers this isn’t the first time this happened in the NBA and the Pacers had evidence of what needed to happen to protect their future.
During the 2010-2011 season, Carmelo Anthony made it clear that he wasn’t going to return to the Denver Nuggets after his contract expired. The Nuggets did their best to mend the relationship, but Melo was unwilling to sign an extension with the team. He pushed for the Nuggets to trade for him to the New York Knicks before the trade deadline.
The trade obviously went through and the Nuggets gained the proper amount of assets and players in return for a star of Melo’s caliber. This is not only why they nearly had an identical winning percentage in their first two seasons without Melo (64.1%) than their last two seasons with him (65.2%), but also accomplished their greatest regular season as a franchise since joining the NBA two seasons removed from Melo’s departure.
Like the Nuggets, the Pacers tried to mend the relationship with Paul George. During the 2016 offseason, they added key veterans (Thaddeus Young, Al Jefferson, and Jeff Teague) to the roster to surround George with the talent and experience necessary to contend at the top of the Eastern Conference. They even went as far as re-signing former Pacer, and George’s former teammate, Lance Stephenson at the end of the season for a late season, playoff push. But, the move was too little, too late.
Although he became a better player, George couldn’t replicate the team success that he had earlier in his career. The writing was on the wall; the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons, the campaigns the Pacers appeared in back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals, were the best years he was going to have with the franchise. In a league in which the teams competing for championships have or are attempting to form a big three (and in the Golden State Warriors’ case, a big four), George was the Pacers’ only star. That wasn’t going to cut it for a player that claimed competing at the highest level is his main priority, and quite simply, it wasn’t going to make him happy.
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers received Domantas Sabonis (3) and Victor Oladipo (5) from the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Paul George trade, and Pacer fans shouldn’t hold a grudge against George for feeling this way. He gave the Pacers organization his best for seven seasons. Although he didn’t make it easy for the Pacers to trade him by being so outspoken about wanting to join the Lakers as a free agent in 2018, he shouldn’t be blamed for how poorly the situation was handled. The only people that should be blamed for the poor return in the George trade are the Pacers’ executives.
Recently hired General Manager Kevin Pritchard shouldn’t have attempted to make it appear as if George’s desires to leave weren’t apparent in the first place. Pritchard, responding to George formally informing the franchise that he didn’t intend to stay with the Pacers long term, went on record stating that, “If we would have known this a few months ago, I think we could have been more prepared. Becoming public was a big issue.”
The thing is, they did know months ago. It was reported in February that barring a miraculous title contending playoff run, he intended to join the Lakers. Why else would the organization dangle his name in trade rumors before the trade deadline, rumors which furthered aggravated George, if they didn’t have a clue about his intentions? Not trading George before the deadline hurt their chances of receiving a great package in return for him. But, it wasn’t the most appalling aspect of how the Pacers handled the situation.
Plenty has been said about how little in return the Pacers received for George. And while the return was awful, the reasoning behind the trade was egregious. Nobody can make a valid argument that the Thunder’s trade package was better than the reported offers on the table from the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, or Cleveland Cavaliers. When a team trades a star away, they usually end up with the short end of the stick (i.e. the DeMarcus Cousins and Jimmy Butler trades). But, the Pacers being fleeced in the manner that they did is unacceptable.
Instead of having top draft picks or young assets on cheap contracts, the Pacers are now stuck with Victor Oladipo, whose production is unlikely to meet the expectations of his $84 million contract, and Domantas Sabonis, who progressively became worse during the 2016-17 season. The Pacers were too emotional regarding their handling of the Paul George situation and were not worried enough about doing what was best for team. They didn’t want to give George what he wanted, and were determined to send him out of the Eastern Conference. And because of it, their future appears to be lackluster, at best.
The Cleveland Cavaliers find themselves in a similar situation with guard Kyrie Irving (2) as the Pacers did with Paul George. Photo Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Other NBA teams can learn a lesson from how Pacers operated. The star players (especially in smaller markets) are the ones in control of the NBA, not the owners. Franchises need to make sure they do everything in their power to make sure their stars are happy and don’t feel the need to leave town to feel fulfilled.
This is especially important for the Cavaliers to keep in mind as they continue to sort through their Kyrie Irving drama. Although their circumstances are different, there are many similarities in how the relationship between the two star players and their franchises deteriorated. The Cavaliers must be careful; with LeBron James’ having a player option after the 2017-18 season, and signs leading many to believe he won’t return to Cleveland, it’s imperative that they handle the Kyrie situation with the maturity and keep what’s best for the organization in mind. Because if they don’t, they’ll end up just like their division-rival; hopeless and mediocre.
But then again, it isn’t like that would be new for them.
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