*FAN SUBMISSION by Joe Crevier of New Jersey. Follow him Twitter @RealJoeCrev.*
In 2005, the Los Angeles Lakers took a risk and drafted the 17 year old big man, Andrew Bynum, straight out of high school. He has shown signs of promise over the years, but has also shown how much he is prone to injury. Andrew’s knees are never going to be 100% again at this point, but he has shown us they don’t need to be. Bynum came off his best season ever in the 2011-2012 season, before being traded to the 76ers in a four way trade, which ultimately sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers. Unfortunately, Bynum had additional knee complications and he didn’t play a single game the entire season for Philadelphia.
Courtesy: USA Today
The question is, did the full year of rehab have a positive impact on Bynum’s knees, or are they completely shot? The answer to this question remains to be seen in this upcoming season, when the Cavs took a risk on him. Aside from his injuries, Andrew is also known to be extremely carefree except when it comes to the paycheck. Don’t get me wrong this guy can play, but he forces you to question his personal ambition.
The Cavaliers, according to Mark Stein, gave Bynum a 2 year $24mil contract with the second year being a team option. This is a steep contract for a guy that sat the entire past season out. However, Derrick Rose did the same thing and no one is questioning if he is worth big money.
This contract, in my opinion, is a great one. Yes it is a substantial amount of money, but the reward is possibly being a playoff team. If everything doesn’t work out though, the Cavs can decide to decline their team option and let him go. This type of contract is a low risk, high reward kind of thing (not to mention you are getting all of those crazy hairstyles Andrew has).
So, if Andrew Bynum can stay healthy this upcoming season, he can prove himself to be right up there with Dwight Howard as the best center in the NBA. If I were the Cavs, I would’ve taken the risk and happy I did it before the opportunity was gone.
