The white flag is up in Brooklyn. First, it was Kyrie Irving and now Kevin Durant. While you were sleeping, the Nets traded Durant to the Suns for some front line players and a lot of draft picks. This follows on the heels of Kyrie moving to the Mavericks.
Just a week ago, Brooklyn was looking forward to a deep playoff run in the Eastern Conference with a hopefully healthy Durant teaming up with Irving. They had a legitimate shot at getting to the NBA Finals. And now, it’s a total tear down and rebuild with a boatful of draft picks.
SU says the NBA has a problem. Apparently, the only way to win a championship is to have 2 – 3 superstars surrounded by effective role players. Now, Milwaukee is a bit of the exception as they won a championship with one true superstar and then a few just below that level players. But if you look today at Boston, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Golden State, etc., it sure seems like that is the formula. The reality is that there aren’t enough superstars to go around. It’s a bit of a turn-off. One can hope that a young team with a star and other really good players can make a deep playoff run like Memphis or Cleveland.
For SU, I think the fun in any sport is rooting for a young team and watching them grow and progress each year. That can be in baseball, basketball or even football. That is why I always prefer to see the Yankees go with the young guys vs. signing the free agents. The Knicks are developing that type of team in the post-Carmelo era (one of the truly glorious eras in pro sports by the way which followed the Isiah Thomas era at MSG. Good times).
LeBron’s Lakers team upgraded with the trade for D’Angelo Russell who will definitely help them along with some solid younger players. The Utah Jazz ended up with Russell Westbrook but he will be moved immediately somewhere and Danny Ainge has a lot of draft picks now to build an interesting team in Utah.
It’s hard to feel badly for Brooklyn but they are a case study in how not to do this.
Sports Update Intergalactic 
Yeah, none of this is good. Harden, Irving, Simmons, Durant, All bad situations. First off, no one is worth 4 first-round picks (plus players), especially when you are 34 years old and have spent extended time injured over the past 3+ years. If Durant was traded in the NFL he would be traded for a 2nd in 2023 and a conditional 5th round pick in 2024.
Outside of being in sunny 75 degree weather everyday, hard to believe that D’angelo Russell would want to be in LA playing with Lebron. It appears to be so much fun watching a 38 year old hog the ball for the 35 minutes he is on the floor and then have your team lose by 5. Just watch Anthony Davis’ reaction each time up and down the court. Congrats to Lebron for surpassing the scoring record, but did you see his frustration during the game against the Thunder when other players were trying to win the game and do what was best for the team rather than pass him the ball to get his points? After he scored to break the record, why an immediate 30 minute ceremony in the middle of the game? Was that a full time out charged to the Lakers? At least finish the last 10.9 seconds of the third quarter before giving out hugs and basketballs.
No one seems to be mentioning Ben Simmons stepping up to fill the void in Brooklyn. Maybe he now will realize he had the right fit in Philadelphia.
We know it is not going to happen, but I would like to see Russell Westbrook effective for Utah this season and help them stay in the top 10 in the West.
I always enjoy the PBok replies. It always encapsulates what I was thinking while also saving me a ton of typing time. The Cliff Notes version is:
– It’s great for the Suns if they win the championship this year or next
– I give it a 5% chance for it to work out in Dallas with Kyrie but even that might be high
– Great haul for the Nets considering they were stuck in the middle if they kept on their trajectory of two weeks ago
– The transformation of LeBron from being a fan favorite when he entered the league to being a complete tool and defining “Me First” is now complete
I preferred the formula involving, Willis, Lucas, Bradley, Clyde, DeBusschere, and Barnett. Later, the Pearl.