Michael Heisley, owner of the Memphis Grizzlies, has recently voiced concerns that maybe the Gasol-for-Brown trade wasn't the best value he could get for his All-Star forward.
I really don't have any commentary here. Just read the story.
What year is it?
5 years ago
9 comments:
Haha I just ordered a Gasol jersey yesterday off NBA Store.
It should be here in 6 to 10 business days. Haha.
I changed my profile picture for respect of Gilbert, but don't worry, I'm still Laker crazy. AHAHAHAHA!
Best part of the story: "Maybe Chris did call every team in the league. I don’t think he did, but maybe he should’ve…"
So, in a business decision of this magnitude, you had no idea what was going on? "Maybe he should've..." Yeah, maybe.
Also: “We’ve been in the lottery more than anyone in the NBA, and we’ve definitely had the worst record twice as much as anyone else,” Heisley said. “This is sure a fantastic system we have – isn’t it? – where we’ve never gotten the No. 1 pick. Our ticket sales just stopped last year when we didn’t get one of the top picks. What’s the sense in of all this?”
Um, how about instead of griping about the system, you take personal responsibility to make good business decisions? I'm going to find out how this guy got rich.
At least you admit the trade was bad, G. Every other Laker fan I've heard from refuses to acknowledge it was thievery.
No, I know it was a horrible trade, but I don't care!!!!!!!!!!
The trade wasn't bad, nobody forced either side into it. Obviously both sides did what they wanted, the question is what did Memphis want. It would have been bad for Memphis if they did it to try to improve their team. But it sounds like they just want to reduce their salary, not for the purpose of accumulating cap room, but just because they want to reduce costs. It's just that in the interview the majority owner let himself come across as an uninformed and unconcerned party. It's hard because he can't admit that he did it for business reasons, it would look terrible. Stern would find some way to have him assassinated or something. But there's no other way to really explain it.
On the bright side, the trade was above board and fortunate for LA. It happened after Jerry West left Memphis which I didn't know. Besides, you're crazy if you think that personal relationships don't play a part in lots of the deals around the league. That it was a piece of luck for LA doesn't dampen my enthusiasm for their success. I mean, if SA doesn't get the no. 1 pick in the '97-ish draft, they don't get Duncan and they have 0 franchise titles, not 4. If Portland doesn't pass on MJ in the draft, Chicago is a team nobody's ever heard of. So I don't have a problem with teams getting some good luck, especially when it's teams I have liked as long as I've watched hoop (not a bandwagon enthusiast, thank you very much).
IMO, the definition of a good trade is not "no one was forced into it."
Under your definition, what trades in NBA history have been bad?
I love your "it was a piece of luck for L.A." theory. Uh, yeah, it was luck that Memphis didn't even shop Gasol around before sending him to the Lakers for three cents on the dollar. Look into the deals that sent Wilt and Kareem to L.A. and tell me there's not a pattern here.
Also, just because you've been a Lakers fan your entire NBA-watching life doesn't make you not-bandwagon. As I clearly demonstrated in my long rant on the subject, the Lakers have been great your entire hoop-watching life. The bandwagon was ripe for the hopping long before you were born.
Sorry, not a good idea to get back into the definition of fanhood argument. I think our difference is that you mean it was a bad trade for competitive balance and basketball success, and I mean it was a good trade in that the sides both got what they wanted. Larger issue to address: get owners who are interested in both making money and winning games. The Grizz don't have one of those.
That last point I can agree with.
If the Grizz choose to actually use said cap space to pursue a major free-agent, I will be slightly persuaded to believe that was their entire motive behind shipping Gasol off for the crud they found in the couch.
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