payitforward wrote:I hope this pointless "hate" for Bradley Beal passes -- & quickly. It certainly doesn't make any sense to me. Let me see if I can turn it around -- drawing on my own business experience over many decades.
You may think e wrong, but I would ask that you consider seriously what I'm going to say here.
Michael Winger is a big-time business guy. He's experienced & tough. He would had no problem staring Brad down while saying, "It's just not in our interest to make that trade, Brad. Sorry. I guess you'll be with us another season. Let's see what you're willing to accept come the deadline, ok?"
After all, Brad was not in a position to trade himself, right? But, Winger didn't let Brad twist. Instead, he made a business decision to take the deal. I have no problem with that decision.
Why? Because Bradley Beal is vastly over-paid. Enormously. & he's guaranteed for 4 more loooong years at worse & worse levels of overpay. Brad's not one of the top 20, 30, or even 40 players in the league. Not any more -- if he ever was. Not a star. Certainly never a superstar. & obviously not going to get better in the next few years.
IOW, we just moved a vastly overpaid player. I wasn't sure it would be possible. & I was certainly dreading the miserable contracts we were going to have to take back.
After all, who in G-d's name would want to bring on a fully guaranteed, no-trade clause protected, $200m 4-year stint by a guy who, at this point in his career, is a somewhat better than average volume scorer. Period. Oh, & for how long will he be that?
Did you notice, btw, that there actually was no offer from Miami? For that matter, I was dreading the horrible contracts we'd have had to take back to trade him there: Tyler Herro sucks, & Robinson is even worse.
In short, so far from being a bad deal, this was a great one! & you know what made it possible?
Winger's smarts, to be sure. But, above all, the fact that right now the Suns are being run by an amateur.
IOW, Michael Winger found a patsy. Only an amateur would have traded for Bradley Beal at this point in his career with the burdensome contract he has (complete with a continuing no-trade clause!).
We just moved the worst contract in the league! & we got back a guy who is terrific value for his $$. Plus we got a bunch of R2 draft picks. This is something to celebrate -- not complain about!Michael Winger just demonstrated that he's a top-tier executive!
Oh, & why are all of you so p!xxed at Brad? -- I have no problem with Beal wanting that deal. Why would he live through a painful & thorough rebuild at this point in his career. I find that easy to understand.
So turn your vitriol on the idiots who gave him the no-trade clause! He didn't give it to himself, & he certainly would have signed the exact same contract without such a clause -- what option did he have? It was the richest contract possible. In fact, leaving the no-trade clause aside, Bradley Beal is not nearly a good enough player to have deserved the contract he got. Not close to anywhere near the remotest neighborhood of deserving the $$ he got for the years he got -- let alone the insane clause.
& if you think I mean Tommy Sheppard, think again. It absolutely had to be Ted Leonsis to make that call -- how not?
Main point? Stop b&tching & start celebrating! Oh, & get ready for a long-haul rebuild that turns the Washington Wizards into one of the best teams in the league! It'll be painful, but it'll be worth it!
I appreciate your re-framing.
But I just can’t completely see it this way. I’m sorry. I wish I could.
In part, I can. But not in full.
Bradley Beal didn’t come to Winger and say: “I would be willing to play with any of these 5-6 teams, see what you can do.” He told Winger — because of his collusion with Durant and Booker — that he would accept a trade only to Phoenix. So no other offers were official, contrary to reports. He removed all chance of that. Which means he handicapped Winger, needing to rebuild, from operating. And lowered his value. Dramatically lowered it. Cratered it.
And bear in mind that although his contract is the very definition of albatross, Bradley Beal has *enormous* value to a team like Phoenix that will blithely pay whatever taxes it has to; Ishbia might be as hopelessly impulsive as Prokorov was, but he knows that Beal can get him a title. And soon. Like, next year soon.
But back to what BB did …
Not only did he collude with opposing players, not only did he brutally limit all other options for Winger, not only did he direct his agent, Bartelstein, to get him to Bartelstein’s son’s team (a brazen act of nepotism that the league would be foolish to ignore), but he stepped in and vetoed our proposed trade target (DeAndre Ayton, who surely would have netted us a good draft pick, possibly in this year’s lottery).
He left us with crumbs. He got his, and he made sure we did not get ours. I’m staggered by just how low and cunning he was.
Truly, I didn’t expect it of him. I had a much different picture of him. It felt vindictive. Brutal.
I’m not being intentionally provocative in saying that. I was actually shocked, watching this all go down.
Now, granted: business can be cut-throat. The NBA is highly competitive.
But this is the franchise that drafted him, developed him, raised him. For 11 years it only did right by him. Too right. It gave him the keys to the store. It made him its face. It gave him more money than any of us can comprehend; more money than anyone who plays mere sports for a living deserves.
And rather than seek a win-win, he Shermaned us. He scorched the earth on his way out.
Yes, I like the fresh start. I mean, my God: it’s long, long, loooooong overdue. And Winger and Dawkins and Schlenk have given me greater hope than any player since … since I don’t know.
And maybe they’ll hit it big with one of those 2nd rounders. Maybe. This team could use some good fortune. It still stings to know that we came thisclose to the No. 1 this year — to know that, before that final ping-pong ball, we had better odds than the Spurs. Sighhhhhhh.
I want to believe that we’ll turn some of that massive cap space into picks via clever salary dump deals.
But for now … for now what I have is the image of Bradley Beal shxtting all over a franchise and a fanbase.
I’ve been a fan of this team since I was 8. I’m now — not 8. My parents are both gone. I’ve lost friends. This team is still here. It means more to me than it should — especially considering how the last 40 years have gone: oof. But even had there been a couple of good, deep runs along the way, I still would be embarrassed at how much I care. Because it’s not important; it’s just a game; it’s a diversion; And yet. And yet. This team exerts a powerful tug. I’ve passed my fandom onto my two young boys. Somehow, amazingly — in light of all the losing — they’re fans, too. And I love that. And them. Though, yes, of course, I feel deeply guilty for handing down this almost comically benighted team.
Sunday was one of the deepest cuts I’ve ever experienced as a fan of this team. Because of the manner in which it went down — the manner in which BB, who had struck me as a man of decency, who seemed to respect and honor loyalty and commitment, acted. It felt humiliating. Brutal. There’s that word again.
That’s not to say I don’t have deep scorn for what Leonsis and Sheppard did with that contract. Oh, the scorn is deep. DEEP.
But in the end, I see that as stupidity. Colossal stupidity — but stupidity all the same.
What Beal did? For me — obviously not for you, but for me — that was venality.
Stupidity is frustrating. It makes you want to bang your head against a wall. And we’ve all done that untold times over the years. But venality — venality is in contradiction of a code; it speaks to a larger disorder in the world; it rejects basic, higher virtues of fairness.
