If you are a fan of sports, or even someone who checks the headlines once in a while, you know of “The Decision”. On July 8th, 2010 ESPN aired a special called The Decision, in which NBA superstar Lebron James would detail where he would sign his next lucrative contract. Typically players of all sports never make that big of a deal when they sign with a team. Yet, the lead up to his signing signified a big move, and rightfully so. Lebron announced that he would join fellow superstars Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat. In the next 4 years this team would make the NBA Finals all 4 times and win it twice. Now, “superteams” such as this were not a new thing in 2010. The Celtics brought Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen together to get the same result. The debate though is, are super teams good for the NBA?
In my opinion I would have to say a strong no, they are not. When Allstars come together and join a single team it does more harm to the league than to better it. While some fans may believe it is more exciting, I think it ruins it. As these teams form they take away the hysteria and mystery of what is usually the underdog. In the past 16 years only 8 different teams have won the NBA championship and a majority of those teams have been considered one of those “superteams”. The problem with them is that for fans of every other team in the league, it seems as though the season is over before it even starts. With few exceptions, all those superteams tend to make it to the championship and leave little hope to all other teams.
The bigger debate comes from the player point of view. The question is do you keep fighting and receive more recognition for winning? Or do you take the easy route and face opposition from other players and fans? Recent events have tended to answer that question for many other players. Over the summer Kevin Durant, coming off a loss to the Golden State Warriors in the playoffs, came to a free agent decision equally as important as Lebron’s. Yet, Durant did not choose the typical route. He did not resign with his team of 8 years or decide with other superstars to sign somewhere else. On July 4th, Kevin Durant announced he’d be joining the Golden State Warriors- the team he had just lost to. The problem here is that the Warriors are one of the top teams in the league, have 3 of the top arguably top 15 players, and won a record 73 games last season out of a possible 82 games. This decision was met with extreme criticism from fans and players alike. Fans protested watching games and commentators talked about how weak of a move Durant made. So the question I have is, should elite athletes be able to join already successful teams? In my own eyes it dilutes the league, diminishes the level of drama, and reveals what players are not willing to work for success.