Courtesy: NY Daily News
I guess these NBA General Managers still don’t get the meaning of building a franchise from the bottom up. The Memphis Grizzlies dealt swingman Rudy Gay to the Toronto Raptors for what they claimed was solely a financial decision. Really?
How about making a deal that’s based solely on the needs of your basketball team? The Grizzlies sat in the fourth position in the Western Conference before the Gay trade. Prime position in what is arguably the best conference in the NBA. You don’t get too many chances to build on previous post season success in the league. Very few franchises can duplicate success year after year on a consistent basis, let alone keep their team intact while only making a few minor adjustments to the roster.
What kind of message is being sent to the Memphis fans? It’s not really about basketball, it’s about saving money? Listen, I’m the first to acknowledge that we as a country have gone through some of the worst times financially over the past five to eight years; however, the NBA isn’t the SEC or the Federal Reserve. Its main purpose is to put the best team on the floor in each of its cities, and let the players that were selected by these franchises perform to the best of their abilities. When you get into the luxury tax penalties and being in a small market city, that’s simply where I draw the line.
If being in a small market is hurting your franchise, apply for relocation with the league and set up shop in a larger market. This is the result of owners with a certain amount of wealth, thinking that all it takes to own and operate a franchise is simply money in the bank. WRONG!!! You have to research the city that you’re looking to invest your franchise in, take into consideration the players that are on the roster, and how much capital it will cost to become a legitimate championship contender.
The Memphis brass is claiming that there’s a need to save money and that’s why the Rudy Gay trade was made. Well, Marc Gasol is due 27 million over the next two seasons, and Zach Randolph is due 33 million over the same time span. You give up a guy who is basically your best wing defender, best wing scorer, and main gate attraction because you are trying to avoid paying luxury tax? Also take into consideration that Rudy Gay is only 26 years of age and has a huge upside of potential.
First the Grizzlies deplete their bench by trading Marreese Speights and Wayne Ellington to the Cavs, in return for a seldom used bench player and a draft pick. Let’s face it; unless there’s something major brewing under the radar in College Basketball, the next best player isn’t going to be available for the Grizzlies to cash in on that pick. Also, since the Rudy Gay trade is all about financial flexibility, how are you going to attract potential free agents when you couldn’t even pay the superstar you had, who loved your franchise and its city?
Grizzlies Front Office
Courtesy: USA Today
We need to stop letting these bonehead GMs and mindless members of the media (The Sports Column team excluded), cloud our thinking with less than adequate facts when it comes to shuffling players around like checkers. The next time a player decides to leave his home team via free agency for a bigger market team or force a trade, fans and media alike should look back at the fiasco in Memphis before commenting on how greedy the player is. Isn’t he just looking out for his financial future just like the owners are?
