The NBA is officially over being held hostage by Carmelo Anthony’s trade demands. After six months of posturing, Anthony got his way and was dealt from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks this week.
The lesson we learned was that once again, the inmates ran the asylum and the wardens buckled in fear.
Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors fans should have been taking notes during this ordeal. It could easily be their team playing the role of the Nuggets in the next few seasons.
The Kings’ Tyreke Evans and the Warriors’ Stephen Curry were both taken within the first seven picks of the 2009 NBA Draft. They finished 1-2 in rookie of the year balloting last season. Their career averages are 19.4 points and 5.7 assists, and 17.8 points and 5.9 assists a game, respectively. The similarities don’t end there.
Both of their contracts are up after this season with team options for 2011-12 and 2012-13. They also are restricted free agents for the 2013-14 season. And, like Anthony, Evans and Curry are from the East Coast.
This probably won’t happen next season, but with the voice these players have on their teams, they could push for trades to the East during the summer before the 2012-13 season. After all, they are the focus of their team despite sharing the spotlight with DeMarcus Cousins and Monta Ellis, respectively.
Both players could say they would rather be close to home than in losing organizations. It is conceivable that Evans could lobby hard for a trade to his hometown of Philadelphia. And Curry could push for a deal to his hometown of Charlotte to play for owner Michael Jordan.
As we see the migration of NBA talent toward the East, this is not out of the question. And Anthony talked about going the free-agent route just to play for the Knicks. Who’s to say Evans and Curry couldn’t threaten that as well, since they become restricted free agents in 2013. Their hometown teams could pay the price to sign them.
That the players could force a trade is not an issue, but a reality of the NBA. The pro game is about the players; that is not going to change even with a new collective bargaining agreement.
That means the challenge will be on the shoulders of basketball generals such as the Kings’ Geoff Petrie and the Warriors’ Larry Riley. They may have to rewrite contracts earlier than they want to keep their stars happy or get the most out of a trade while being held hostage – and not looking like a bad guy for dealing a star. At this point, Riley has better odds than Petrie of keeping his star happy.
Also, this is not to say that Evans and Curry are in the same zip code as Anthony. But East Coast teams trying to keep up with the Knicks, Heat and Celtics would welcome these players with a red carpet.
Yes, this is a hypothetical problem. But this season has been dominated by talk of Anthony’s eventual trade. If we’ve learned anything this week, it’s that a star player in the NBA usually gets what he wants. And Evans and Curry are Northern California’s star NBA players.
Copyright 2011/Bill Bradley
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