Lebron to Golden State, For Parity's Sake

First off, let me begin by stating that I am an Adam Silver fan and for the most part support all of this “parity” shit he’s pushing, even while a number of other pundits are vehemently complaining.

TAX APRONS

Concerning all of this “tax apron” shit, first of all, the way I remember it, NBA teams have always been more or less empowered to spend as much as they like - that is to say, within their respective budgets.  So it’s not like that’s actually changed now, but more like the more dough you spend, the higher the “tax” penalty.

So now, finally, you see that organizations across the board are truly shook.  But still, this isn’t a perfect system, and indeed, no worldly system is.

For instance, let’s say someone like Elon Musk were to buy an NBA team.  Would he be as reluctant as James Dolan to venture into the ‘dreaded second apron’.  Would he be reluctant to spend at all?  The richer you are, the more you can buy.  That’s not the NBA; that’s financial reality.

And in terms of promoting equality across the league, let’s be frank.  There are some teams out there, money or no, that have a much harder time attracting stars than others.  That’s something I’ll get into a bit later, when talking about Lebron and Detroit.

Well now, the better teams won’t be able to pay everyone who may want to play for them.  So since “the NBA is a business”, more players will be compelled to go to the less popular teams that can actually afford their worth(?).

That said, I think it does sorta suck that now, players are being more or less forced to take pay cuts.  We had a few years there where C-listers were commonly making $10+mil/year, but now, those days appear to be over (i.e. the Dort situation).

ANTI-TANKING

While teams are being forced to penny pinch, they’re concurrently being disincentivized from intentionally losing which, unlike other professional sports(?), is actually a thing in the NBA.  So now, everyone is being pushed into the middle, so to speak.

You can no longer rationalize stacking a team to your heart’s content.  And let’s be honest - do superteams statistically work anyway?  More have failed than succeeded, and even the ones that have won sometimes still have to rely on the NBA powers-that-be(?).

And at the same time, you can no longer rationalize intentionally losing either -  at least not with the goal of landing the highest draft pick possible.  Or more simply put, what Silver and co. have done is made the league more competitive.

The way I foresee it, we fans will no longer be treated to scab games, i.e. teams fielding a bunch of D-listers while stars are resting or whatever, because popularity = sales, winning = popularity and losing ≠ high draft picks like it used to.  So there’s really no reason to stash a favorite on the injury list, unless maybe he’s truly hurt.

EXPANSION IN MIND

And when arguing against Silver, one thing pundits always seem to forget is that soon, the NBA will be expanding to 32 teams.  I personally believe that’s the primary reason why the powers-that-be are now taking “parity” more seriously, because the league already has an issue when it comes to disseminating talent, and it’ll only get worse if you add a couple of more squads to the mix with things remaining as they were.

So what am I now predicting?  That the NBA will continue to trend towards youth, as apparently there’s a plethora of talented youngsters popping up in the past couple of years.  However, in terms of these youth movements, it’s like a team will be really competitive for maybe like five years and then fall off.  Part of the reason will be organizations not having as much money to throw around anymore, so once stars age and start getting injured, it’ll affect them more adversely than ever (i.e. Jalen Williams).

NO SYMPATHY FOR OKC

No, I don’t feel sorry for the Thunder.  I’m a strong advocate of stacking teams, in terms of having as many above-average players on your roster as possible, not in terms of blowing out the competition but because now, in the NBA’s “tender age”, dudes are getting injured more than ever.  So better to have as much roster insurance as possible.

But at same time, look at OKC in the playoffs.  Like the old saying goes, ‘there’s only one ball to go around’.  Yet you have a team of like 10+ players who deserve extended court time.  And despite their depth, the Thunder still failed to repeat regardless.

Since acquiring what’s-his-name from Philly, OKC had more dudes than they could field anyway, even with a couple of injuries.  Players want to win, but I would venture to say even moreso, they want to actually play.  So yeah, spread the wealth a bit.

EFFECTIVE BRAINTRUSTING NO LONGER AN OPTION

So what Silver has done is made it such that having a quality braintrust is now perhaps more important than ever.  Luck is very much a factor, as injuries can derail even the best laid plans.  But now, payroll departments have to work overtime to make sure every penny spent is put to good use, and GMs have to think harder about compatibility, i.e. maximizing role players instead of over-relying on superstars.

LEBRON TO THE PISTONS?

That said, the Knicks are heading into next season as a superteam.  They may not be in the traditional big 3 sense (unless Anunoby is now considered a superstar).  But they are in terms of having two perennial allstars, buttressed by two or three players who may be allstars if they were on lesser teams.  And by that definition, there are also arguably other supersteams out there, such as the Spurs, the aforementioned Thunder and even the Cavs, as they currently stand without Lebron.

And speaking of Lebron, as readers of this blog know, I’ve been most strongly advocating the idea of him going to the Pistons, even though they aren’t on his shortlist or even apparently on his long list.  Obviously, it’s not someplace James wants to go, and who know if they want him either.  But I made that assertion based solely on fit, i.e. of all eight teams who at least made the semifinals last postseason, they’re the ones who most need Lebron and vice versa, in terms of actually winning a championship.

And on that note, let me ask this.  When was the last time an A-list, coveted NBAer voluntarily went to the Pistons?  I’m sitting here racking my brain, spanning over the last 30-40 years and literally can’t think of anyone.

I have no idea why this is so, since they aren’t like a small market team.  Detroit is one of America’s premiere cities, and unlike most franchises, I mean yeah, the Pistons have their eras of sucking (i.e. the 2010s), but unlike most at least they have a couple of (modern) championships under their belt.

So now, they’re going to be forced to overpay Jalen Duren.  That’s right, I said it - overpay.  Dude is a stud, like you can just look at him and see that.  But he reminds me of one those types who's like really tall and athletic but doesn’t know how to actually play basketball.

Duren is a star based solely on physicality, so to speak.  And I mean it’s all good; I’m not hating.  Dennis Rodman, arguably my favorite player of all time, also falls into that category, even more than Jalen.

But Duren doesn’t strike me as the kind of C that can lead a team to a championship.  But that said, there’s a number of max players out there, regardless of position, who can’t lead a team to a championship.

GOLDEN STATE OF MIND

But now, the reason I’m writing this post is in support of Lebron going to the Warriors instead.  Do I think Lebron + Steph, buttressed by the Dubs’ current roster, can win a championship?  Hell no, unless maybe Butler comes back at reinvigorated, 1000% strength and furthermore is able to stay on the court.

But with that in mind, for parity’s sake, it looks like these guys are really going to suck.  So at the heart of my argument is this.  Even if Golden State doesn’t win games, at least with Lebron - unlike the past couple of seasons - they’ll be must watch.  So if you can’t achieve parity in competitiveness, at least try to do so in viewership.

Another reason Lebron + Golden State may be a match made in heaven is because neither appreciates youth.  I knew the day would come when the Dubs would regret not taking the likes of Poole and Kuminga more seriously, making more of an effort to incorporate youthful standouts instead of writing them off, and that day was already last season.  So as they currently stand, things definitely aren’t looking pretty heading into 2027.

CONCLUSION

I’ve slept on the Warriors off in the past only to later eat my words.  But things reach a point where even if you’re unable to accept reality, you at least have to respect it.

Steph is still must watch, when it’s the postseason and he’s actually playable.  But otherwise, nobody really gives AF about the Dubs anymore, and you know, we fans want a reason to care.  That issue would be instantly rectified with the acquisition of Lebron.

But obviously, you know, the King wants to win besides just pleasing fans.  In terms of actually winning, based on his shortlist, I also recently argued that the Sixers would be the best choice.  They wouldn’t be a better fit than the Pistons, but again, there’s no indication he wants to go to Detroit.  And it seems that LBJ may have recently dropped a hint that he is likewise leaning towards Philly.