Now we can all stop complaining about how David Stern and the NBA handled this situation. It’s over. This was definitely not a situation that David Stern and the NBA wanted to have to deal with. In the end, Paul is headed west to L.A. No, not the Lakers. It’s those loveable Clippers that will gain his services, at least for 2012-13. Sure it was a bit messy, but the deal is done.
In general, having the commissioners office own an NBA team isn’t exactly the way the league drew it up.
Stern even joked about it a bit during last night’s conference call announcing the Chris Paul trade. When asked if he would recommend that this type of arrangement never be made again Stern said, “Oh, no, I’m out looking for teams to buy (laughing). I would recommend only to the most hardy with the thickest of skins that they do this.”
It’s been a long road filled with complaints, but it’s finally over.
The Lakers fans can not complain about the trade that ended up being accepted. The Clippers gave more long-term value to the Hornets than the initial Lakers deal. There is no conspiracy in that regard.The Clippers deal was a flat-out better offer than the Lakers offer.
Ideally the Lakers trade would not have got to the media at all. It was not official. There was some communications breakdown there, because the commissioners office had to sign off on all “major deals”. The deal should not have been leaked until that process was completely wrapped up. I’m sure Stern wishes that wasn’t the way it went down.
Moreover, Stern must have had a word to two with the parties he believes prematurely leaked the Lakers proposal to the media. I would assume it would be someone within, or close to, the Lakers organization. That party must not have been pleased when the news got to them that the deal was a no go. Thus, in turn, they leaked the story to the media, making it look like Stern was going back on his word in some manner. In reality, the Lakers deal never was official. Protocol was for the Hornets internal staff and NBA league office to collaborate in this process. That process was still ongoing when we all learned of the deal that Thursday night last week.
We don’t know exactly how that sequence of events took place. For that reason I find it difficult to really vilify Stern for this one.
Stern’s time as commissioner might be running short. It may very well soon be time for Adam Silver to take over. The CP3 situation won’t be what we take away from Stern’s run atop the NBA.
That said, the issue of superstars abandoning ship to move from a small market to a big market is alive and well. It’s an issue that should have received more attention during the last collective bargaining agreement discussions just a few short months ago. The problem is, at that time, both the players and owners were worried about money rather than competitive balance. This might the the biggest problem Stern has left for Adam Silver.
Who am I kidding? I know this isn’t over. Accoridng to the LA Times, the Lakers were “fuming” last night when word Paul would end up a Clipper made it to their office.
You can’t blame them for being upset. The team didn’t get what they wanted. But everything, minus the media’s involvement, went mostly according to protocol. So, no dice. And no trade. Though, I’ve already stated how I think this will actually benefit the Lakers in the short term.
