Ben Simmons Extension Given not Earned

On Monday, July 15 All Star forward Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers was given a five-year. $170 million contract extension. The question is not whether he deserved  the extension but did the 76ers give it to him prematurely. Simmons‘ game has remained the same since the first day he got into the league back in the 2016, in which he was drafted number 1 overall . He sat out the 2016-2017 season with a  foot injury . The element of his game he needed to improve was his ability to shoot. One would expect that he would have worked on that portion of his game in the summer followed that season . He did not work on that portion of his game and two players come to mind when I think about Ben Simmons which are Giannis Antetokounmpo and Andrew Wiggins.  These two players were in similar situations where both the Minnesota Timberwolves and Milwaukee Bucks decided to give each player a contract extension while on their rookie contracts. They did this with expectations that the players would get better and improve their games. It has paid dividends and then some for the Bucks with Giannis leading the Bucks to best record in the NBA and also winning the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award this past season. Andrew Wiggins on the other hand has not improved as a player with many of his stats have regressed or marginally improved. With Simmons playing with Joel Embiid I fear he could fall into the Andrew Wiggins type player where he doesn’t work on his deficiencies and never develops a jump shot. This is not only needed in today’s NBA which is predicated on spacing but especially for the 76ers. With JJ Redick and Jimmy Butler leaving in free agency the need for Simmons to developing just a mid range shot will be crucial to the teams championship aspirations. If I were the Sixers I would have waited until this summer to discuss contract extension; If he did not still improve I would extend the qualifying offer and match whatever offer he would get from another team.  This would show not just Simmons but the team even for one of the best players you have to earn their contract. Now the Sixers have paid max dollars to a player who has not worked on his game when he is scheduled to make just $8.1 million* this year. He’s making an average of  $34 million* over the next 5 years good luck. Also I would get a new coach that would hold both Simmons and Embiid accountable to getting better. Ben Simmons is worth an extension no question but for a max contract I need to see you try to improve as a player. 

• Contract numbers were taken from www.HoopsHype.com

'Real Deal Sports 2 Big NBA Takeaways

This summers storylines has been ruled by the NBA when it comes to the sports landscape. Even with with free agency dying down there are still plenty of headlines around the NBA this week. The real deal sports 2 big takeaways this week we will explore Damian Lillard's comments about not wanting to team up with another superstar, and  Russell Westbrook’s fit in Houston.

Earlier this week Portland Trailblazers' Star Point Guard Damian Lillard spoke about this week how with players being more friendly today that a pitch of going to play with friends is more powerful than any sales pitch a General Manager or other executives can make. Also he talked about how back in the day players such as Michael Jordan would not have thought about the idea of calling up other star players in the league and saying do they want to team up. The premise of what Lillard is saying is true but also flawed at the same time. When you look back at the teams from the 80’s and 90’s many of the teams that won championships in those eras the rosters were filled with stars and players who are in the Hall of Fame. The Celtics and Lakers just to name some of the players who were on those teams Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, for the Celtics. For the Lakers you had Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, James Worthy all of who are in the Hall of Fame as well. The Bulls in the 90’s had Micheal Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman who are all in the Hall Fame. Also the Detroit Pistons has Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, and Dennis Rodman another group players who are the in Hall of Fame. This shows that you need multiple stars to win in the NBA for the most part. The difference being back then the executives of the teams constructed the rosters. In today’s game the very elite players have the power and they are using but instead getting different coaches such as they did back in the day they are saying I want to play with that guy.

In addition to Lillard's comments another hot topic which occurred later this week was the Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul trade. This reunited Russell Westbrook and James Harden to form perform one of the most dynamic duos in the NBA. The biggest question is how are both James Harden, and Westbrook are going to play together. Both star players did play together in Oklahoma City 2009 to 2012; but much has changed in the last 9 years. Harden and Westbrook have since both won the Most Valuable  Player ( MVP) awards; both have also produced historic individual achievements with the ultimate team goal of winning a NBA Championship eluding both. I believe the duo of Westbrook and Harden will work if Westbrook takes a step like he did while playing with Paul George last year. Also Westbrook has to improve his 3 point shooting as he only shot 29% from the 3pt line last season. When the season is over the Rockets will be a top 4 seeded team with a chance of winning a championship.

Kawhi’s Decision

On July 6th around 12am Pacific time caused many fireworks around the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the biggest Free Agent Kawhi Leonard deciding to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers. This was a great signing and the Clippers were also to able acquire in what many saw as a out of nowhere move the Oklahoma City Thunder’s  star player Paul George.This has shifted the NBA landscape because it puts the Clippers as the top title contender; due to the fact the core of the team is still intact which made the playoffs last season. The Clippers gave up 5 first round picks of which  4 are unprotected in addition to Forward Danilo Gallinari and also promising Point Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA).  The trade has many ramifications around the league including what happens with the Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors who were the two other teams trying to get Leonard to sign with them. Also we will look at options for the Thunder who’s future seems to look completely different from 24 hours ago.

The Toronto Raptors are the defending NBA Champions who just saw their best player and NBA Finals MVP Leonard walk away from the team. This puts the champions in a unique situation where they have to choose between making a run to repeat or to exploring trades to rebuild the team for the future . The team currently consist of a veteran core who have one year left on their contracts. They have a young rising star in the 2018-2019 Most Improved Player Pascal Siakam. They can build the team around him and Point Guard Fred Vanvleet. The Raptors should trade their veteran players and rebuild around Siakam and Vanvleet. This is because they are the fourth best team in the Eastern Conference with there being a huge gap between the top 2 teams in the East,Milwaukee and Philadelphia, and everyone else. The Raptors will be in good hands with General Manager Masai Ujiri at helm he will be sure to make great deal done which will keep the Raptors relevant.

The  Los Angeles Lakers  The other team that missed out on Leonard have to be feeling a little disappointed this morning since they only did not sign Leonard but also seeing him go to the team that plays in the same city and building as you adds more to it. The Lakers when free agency started did not have enough cap space to sign Leonard to a max contract and through trades they created the space with hopes of creating a formidable trio of Lebron James, Anthony Davis and Leonard. With Leonard choosing the Clippers the Lakers have to go to their plan B which was to fill out there rosters with secondary players to go along side James and Davis. The Lakers are still seen as a title contenders but getting Leonard would have made them a dynastic team in many peoples minds. They are linked to many role players who are shooters and starting level players which will be essential when playing with James and Davis.

In addition to the Raptors and Lakers not signing Leonard we also have to mention the Oklahoma City Thunder who traded one of their star players in Paul George. The Thunder wanted to try to shed salaries to help them to get under the luxury tax the Paul George trade helps that. This move essential means the Thunder will trade Steven Adams and possibly Russell Westbrook. With the 5 first round draft picks from the Clippers trade the rebuild is all but written on the wall. Westbrook has been applauded for his loyalty to the Thunder and for the Thunder to reportedly have his name used as a trade chip for Siakam will not sit well with him.

The NBA is excited that Leonard ended up in LA. It’s great that the top 3 players in the league Lebron James, Kevin Durant, and Kawhi Leonard are all in the the top 2 media markets in America. While also being on different teams which helps to drive the narrative that there is parity in the NBA. If Leonard is able to bring the Clippers a championship his legacy would put him into a rarified heir.

Jimmy Butler and The Timberwolves

On Wednesday, September 19^th a meeting between Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star Jimmy Butler and Tom Thibodeau who is the team’s head coach and president of basketball operations to discuss Jimmy’s future with the team. It was at this meeting that Jimmy expressed his desire to be traded. There are many different components to this story that will be explored in this article. It was rumored over the summer that Butler was not enamored with the fact that the team’s two young stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins displayed traits to that are detrimental to winning. In the case of Towns Butler believes he is more concerned about his number than he is about winning. This trait seems to me to do with more of Towns being a young player and not being at a point in his career where is thinking I will do whatever it takes to win even if that means sacrificing some of my numbers. Andrew Wiggins has been labeled as soft which is the worst thing that you can say to an athlete. Once the report came out that Butler wanted to be traded Wiggin’s brother tweeted out Hallelujah which many people assume that Andrew endorsed. This tweet even caused former NBA player Stephen Jackson to put an Instagram video out where he calls out Wiggins for not having the heart need when playing basketball. Which caused a back and forth between Wiggins and Jackson on Instagram. 

With me covering the internal reasons why Butler wants out Minnesota I will now examine the front office’s response to Butler’s trade request. It was reported on Friday by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that the Timberwolves intend to keep Jimmy Butler. Here is the twist the owner of the team Glenn Taylor would like to trade Jimmy Butler to avoid any negative image of having a player on the team that clearly does not want to be there. This is the opposite thinking of the General Manager Scott Layden and Thibodeau who want to keep Butler because they know the basketball value he brings to the team and also the fact the pieces they get back most likely will not equate to players of Butler’s ability, or they are future assets in the form of draft picks which cannot help the team this season. Many people believe this could be Thibodeau’s last season of running basketball operations if not his last year with the team as a whole. Thibodeau would want to coach a playoff team which would make his tenure in Minnesota a success being that it would mean he not only made it 2 of his 4 seasons with the team but also it would the last two seasons. Obviously, with the owner wanting to trade Butler it is inevitable that it will happen. Taylor has a history getting involved in trades specifically when it came to the trading of the team’s previous stars in Kevin Love and Kevin Garnett. When you hire someone to do a job let them do that job because a leader who micromanages the results are usually a disaster. If you think about the most successful franchise the owners do not try to get involved unless necessary. Here are a few teams whose owners many would say are too involved and the organizations have had minimal success in that sport from a Wins and losses standpoint, Dallas Cowboys, New York Knicks, Washington Redskins. Here examples of teams who are successful and most likely you do not know the owner’s name San Antonio Spurs, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Houston Rockets. Once the trade is complete it will be interesting to see how the dynamic changes between the front office and the owner and will this cause players if they do not see eye to eye with Thibodeau to go to the owner for support.

Butler also revealed a list of three teams he would like to be traded to which include the Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets. The teams he listed are interesting because they are teams not only in the two largest media markets which then opens many opportunities off the court. Also, each of these teams is expected to have or make cap space to sign two max contract players. The one team that was left off of his list were the Los Angeles Lakers who are expected to have enough cap space so they can sign one max player. In addition to the cap space this upcoming summer they have Lebron James. Jimmy Butler is a top 20 player and a top 5 two-way player, I can see why he would not want to play with Lebron. This is because not only does your style of play has to change but also with the way the team is orchestrated his role would be diminished. With Kawhi Leonard expected to explore free agency this summer imagine a team with Kawhi and Butler that team would tough to beat.

Finally, I want to offer a solution to what the Timberwolves should do with being Andrew Wiggins being labeled as soft and none of his teammates coming to his defense leaves me to believe they agree with what Stephen Jackson said. With him being a player from Canada it plays to the stereotype of non-American basketball players not having that toughness when chaos erupts, and you must fight your way out. Since his teammates feel that way trade Wiggins keep Butler and have Towns and Butler work through it. Teams must realize you do not have to like each but respect each other to get the job. With Wiggins being labeled soft they clearly do not respect Wiggins so send him to another team. If Butler id traded the Timberwolves miss the playoffs they will miss the playoffs by a mile because Butler is the Heart and soul of that team. He gives them a toughness and defensive presence needed when you want to win. Butler is simply a cut from a different cloth than his younger teammates so if he is traded I will see it being a veteran-filled team otherwise these issues will continue to manifest if the younger members are not about doing what it takes to win.

Le'veon Bell and The Pittsburgh Steelers

All-Pro Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’veon Bell is currently not reporting to the team due to his dissatisfaction with his contract. In the NFL teams can use the Franchise Tag, a tool used by teams so they can keep key players whom they can potentially lose in free agency and, so they do not hamstring the team’s salary cap situation for the upcoming year. The first time a player is franchise tagged teams must pay the player the average salary of the top five players at that given position. In rare instances, teams may franchise tag players two years in a row which requires the team to pay players a 120% increase from what the player made last year. This is the case for Le’veon Bell he has been franchise tagged for the 2018 and 2017 seasons. He is scheduled to make $14.5 million this year but he is looking for a long-term deal. Le’veon has told people he wants to be paid between $15 to $17 million a year like the amount of a top Wide Receiver makes in the league. The consensus was that a team would never pay a running back that amount of money because of the fact, when they reach their second contract most begin to decline and are not able to live up to the contract they signed. On July 24^th  the Los Angeles Rams changed the game by giving Todd Gurley a four-year contract extension worth $60 million with $45 million guaranteed. This not only reset the market for running backs, but I also believed once Le’veon saw the extension that Gurley received his extensions drew a line in the sand about signing the franchise tag tenure and showing up to training camp. Gurley who had 2 years remaining on his current contract received his extension which showed that if you have great talent which Le’veon and Gurley both have someone will be willing to pay you. Recently on September 5, 2018, several Pittsburgh Steelers offensive linemen spoke out against Le’veon and made unfavorable comments about the running back and even compared his salary to theirs. This crossed the line because there is an unspoken rule that you do not talk about how much someone else makes. With the season starting this week Le’veon Bell will not be with the team which means he is forfeiting $845K which is what he makes per game. Since Le’veon has not signed his franchise tenure he will not be fined for not being with the team he just will miss game checks for all games he does not attend. For Le’veon to get credited for a year of service with the Pittsburgh Steelers he must be active for 6 games and then he can become an unrestricted free agent. In theory, Le’veon can wait until week 10 to report to the team and still receive a full credited year of service. However, the Steelers can put Le’veon on the commissioner’s exempt list for 2 weeks in which they would not have to pay him. If I was Le’veon I would show up week 8 to make sure that I am credited for a full year and to have a talk with the offensive linemen about them throwing me under the bus. Steeler’s star wide receiver Antonio Brown came to the defense of Le’veon with an Instagram post saying “We all we got, we all we need. Ready to roll whenever you get back with us, family” and tagged Le’veon in the post. This will most likely be Le’veon’s last year in Pittsburgh and with both sides knowing that you have a difference in philosophies from the player and team standpoints. If you’re the Steelers, you will do everything you can to win and Le’veon gives your team the best chance to win; this means the Steelers will put the ball in his hand as much as possible. Le’veon’s thought process is to take the least amount of hits as possible, knowing when it comes to negotiating his next contract next season his new team will use all the touches he has this season against him. Le’veon touched the football over 400 times last year and if he were to do that this year the chances him of getting the big payday he is looking for this offseason will be diminished. Until the NFL gives guaranteed contracts to their players the star players I believe they will hold out until they are able to get what they think they are worth. We have seen this happen in 2 other instances this year with Aaron  Donald and Khalil Mack both players ended getting their money. I do not see Le’veon coming back until absolutely needs to, so he can become a free agent next year and I completely agree with him.    

Kaepernick and Nike

On Monday September 3rd Nike revealed that they are using former NFL Quarterback Collin Kaepernick as the face of their 30th anniversary of the “Just Do It” campaign. Many different opinions have been expressed about weather Nike is hijacking the conversation to take the backlash that they currently facing from lawsuits being filed against them for gender and racial discrimination; as well Nike’s history of the questionable labor conditions in which the employees who make the Nike sneakers are subject to. The other opinion being; Nike will not only stand by their athletes but will also be on the right side of history when future generations look back on the historical Kaepernick situation. At the beginning of the 2016 season Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in protest of police brutality against minorities of color. He received much backlash from people including President Trump who all claimed he was disrespecting the American flag. Much of that narrative has continued to be pushed despite the fact that Kaepernick was once told by a former Green Beret Nate Boyer that to show respect to the military you should kneel not sit during the national anthem. Fast Forward to 2018 Kaepernick has filed a lawsuit against the NFL for collusion by the NFL owners to keep him out of the league. There is a growing sentiment among certain fans that the NFL has colluded to keep Kaepernick of the league; Many have given the example of several lesser talented quarterbacks getting jobs ahead of Kaepernick.

I believe Nike is making a great business decision because they are using Kaepernick to spread his message while simultaneously making sure they are constantly talked about, especially with this milestone in their company’s history happening. Nike is also choosing to side with the 18-35 demographic which is not only the core target audience but also many of who believe in Kaepernick's past actions and current message. Another thing that I would applaud Nike for is that they also realize black people buy shoes and apparel as well. In the end this is a win win for Nike and Kaepernick Nike gets talked about even more. Kaepernick receives a full apparel, shoe line and a platform, which he can use the proceeds to continue to further his cause to spread his message of wanting everyone to be treated with respect.

Guilty Before Proven Innocent

On March 30th Alabama University dismissed defensive linemen Johnathan Taylor who was arrested for a domestic violence incident. This is the second time that Taylor had been arrested for this matter, he also was arrested in Georgia and the University of Georgia dismissed him from school and the football team. Once the news broke the Head Coach of the Alabama Football, team, Nick Saban,  issued a statement saying that he was sorry for how things turned out for Johnathan but he was not sorry for giving the young man a second chance. On  April 1st the accuser of Johnathan Taylor was arrested for filing a false police report. The false police report dealt with the domestic violence incident that was said to have occurred between Taylor and herself. In light of this new evidence the charges against Taylor were dropped. Unfortunately for Taylor he is still not allowed to not only play football but he is prohibited from attending the University of Alabama. This to me makes zero sense because he was cleared and found innocent of all things he was accused of so why can he not rejoin the team and university. I understand he has a checkered past but this is the land of second chances and it seems that just because he was accused the decision was immediately made to cut bait with him before letting the whole process play out.
Which brings me to my point in writing this article, which is I feel that when it comes to certain issues people are to quick to judge before all of the facts are laid out for them. An example of this is the Johnathan Martin and Richie Incognito case in 2014 many people assumed that  Incognito was bullying Martin. When in fact they would talk to each other in the vulgar manner and it also showed how quickly public opinion can control a situation. That is what I think happened here with the Johnathan Taylor incident;in light of the Ray Rice incident this past NFL season it seems to me that the accusation of domestic violence is just as damaging if not more than the actual committing of the crime. I say this because if you are accused of something and it is not true you spend so much time trying to clear your name and prove your innocence and even if you do still doesn't mean people will treat as if you didn't commit the crime. An example of this is the Syracuse basketball situation with Jim Boeheim and the basketball teams falsified grades and players getting payed by agents. The NCAA assumed that he knew about what was going in his program and he says he had no clue about it. There are some people that say that there is no way he didn't know, so in there minds he will be guilty even if he truly is guilty. I just think before we decisions that will effect someone's entire life lets just have the whole process play out before coming to a conclusion.