So what happened to "winning takes sacrifice and players who aren't willing to do that are selfish and only focused on personal accolades"?
I don't see how you can have it both ways. We kill guys like Melo for taking the money and getting their numbers, but then we turn around and kill guys for Love for settling in the name of winning.
People complain for the sake of complaining.
I am finding it hard to find the right words ...
I can understand a guy like Gary Payton who is in his mid-30s accept a minor role on a team to try and get a title before he calls it a day. That makes sense to me. This guy was a warrior who battle every day to lead his team to a title. Now, he is older, he is past his prime. The individual accomplishments are past. He is no longer fit to play a starring role on a team. He is on his way down and out. Last challenge is to win a title. I can understand a star player like that accepting a much much smaller role on a title contender to have a shot at a Championship.
What I cannot understand is a 26 year star just entering his prime ... a guy who has had seasons where he averaged 20/15, 26/13, 26/12.5 ... a guy, who for my money, is the second most skilled offensive big man in the league behind Dirk Nowitzki ... a guy that talented and clearly capable of playing a starring role on a title contender (more likely as a #2 than #1 guy) turn around and happily accept his team turning him into a Ryan Anderson level role player. To have that talent and to be content to be ignored by his teammates time and time again down the court. To be belittled and mistreated.
This is not sacrifice. Sacrifice is moving from #1 guy in Minnesota to being a #2 or maybe even #3 guy where he still plays major role for his team.
That isn't happening in Cleveland. It is a two man show there. It's LeBron and LeBron's sidekick Kyrie Irving. Everyone else is diminished to role player status. Those two guys want their touches and they are not sharing them. They don't care about getting the most out of their teammates. They care about getting the most out of themselves and the players around them learning to fit in with them so they can show the most of their own talents. You don't fit, screw you.
This isn't sacrifice. Not to me. This is a failure to compete. A failure to challenge oneself. Hiding in the shadows. Content never to push yourself. To never show your true talent. To hide from the challenge of competing at the highest level you are capable of competing at.
And it disgusts me.
... and yet, I could understand it if he did it for the money but he didn't even do that right! Take a one-two year deal and then really cash in with new salary cap.What a waste of talent. We should be celebrating and enjoying this wonderfully skilled big man for years to come. Instead we get to watch him being ignored repeatedly by his teammates and coaches. What a waste.