Allanon
09-23-2008, 09:25 PM
Josh Childress may be the beginning and the End of Big Euro $$$
http://thundertalk.net/index.php?option=com_myblog&show=Josh-Childress-may-be-the-beginning-and-the-End-of-Big-Euro-.html&Itemid=1
One of the biggest deals to go off during the summer was the eloping of Josh Childress from the Atlanta Hawks to go play in Europe.
Childress reportedly signed a deal with Greek powerhouse Olympiakos B.C. worth $20 million NET over 3 years. That would be something equivalent to an NBA contract worth $40 million since, in Europe, the team pays the taxes. That's alot of money to be paying an up and coming but still kind of raw young player.
Josh Childress is a talented, exciting young player but he has a relatively low ceiling because he's just not a very good shooter and plays mostly off his athleticism. Additionally, European teams are mostly about 3 point bombing and jumpshots, much different than the fun and gun Hawks or Suns of the NBA.
The Aggelopoulos brothers, billionaire owners of the Piraeus, Athens based team, signed Childress to such a rich contract for the prestige of it all. They obviously didn't do it for revenue because the team doesn't make THAT much money (the Olympiacos BC arena seats 8,721 fans). The wanted the prestige of winning. Even if they're billionaires and can afford to lose a few million, they expect Josh Childress to deliver wins and points. If Childress can't put up 20-30 points per night, he's going to be considered a failure.
So how's Josh doing in Greece? Not too good (given the expectations of him being the "American Superstar") He's played 3 games already and has pretty much stunk things up. It's so bad that Greek fans are already openly wondering if he's a waste of money. Truth is, he probably is. He's getting Superstar money in Europe but putting out like the role player he is. In his first game, he missed the game-winning jumper....is ANYBODY in the US surprised? We know he's not a clutch shooter right now, but the Greek fans got the over-hyped info on Childress so they were certainly disappointed.
He was never capable of being the man in the NBA, why would he all of sudden turn into a clutch shooter? Don't tell me getting extra money will turn you into "the man". Greek fans are going to be in for a disappointing season and their scorn for NBA players might only be starting.
Already, there are many European fans that think their Euro teams are just as good as the NBA players. This whole train of thought started back in 2004 when Manu Ginobili and the Argentina National team put a woodshed beating on Team USA. The Greek team also torched Team USA with pick and roll after pick and roll. Before the most recent Olympics, the Spanish team was the World Champion. So now with Josh Childress' sucky play, casual Euro fans might even consider US players even suckier.
Childress has averaged only about 11 points and 5 rebounds in his first 3 games. Those numbers would sound great in the NBA...if he was a $4 million role-player but the Greeks are paying Josh the equivalent of an NBA $13 million dollar salary. Sure these games would be considered "pre-season" or "friendlies" but still, it gives an early look at Josh's struggles.
Josh Childress' signing might be the start and end of the extravagent salaries paid to NBA role players. If he improves his play, then maybe he can redeem himself but as far as I can see, I don't see much improvement coming along in his game...he's just not a good fit for Euro ball. I wouldn't be surprised to hear he wants to come back to the NBA.
http://thundertalk.net/index.php?option=com_myblog&show=Josh-Childress-may-be-the-beginning-and-the-End-of-Big-Euro-.html&Itemid=1
One of the biggest deals to go off during the summer was the eloping of Josh Childress from the Atlanta Hawks to go play in Europe.
Childress reportedly signed a deal with Greek powerhouse Olympiakos B.C. worth $20 million NET over 3 years. That would be something equivalent to an NBA contract worth $40 million since, in Europe, the team pays the taxes. That's alot of money to be paying an up and coming but still kind of raw young player.
Josh Childress is a talented, exciting young player but he has a relatively low ceiling because he's just not a very good shooter and plays mostly off his athleticism. Additionally, European teams are mostly about 3 point bombing and jumpshots, much different than the fun and gun Hawks or Suns of the NBA.
The Aggelopoulos brothers, billionaire owners of the Piraeus, Athens based team, signed Childress to such a rich contract for the prestige of it all. They obviously didn't do it for revenue because the team doesn't make THAT much money (the Olympiacos BC arena seats 8,721 fans). The wanted the prestige of winning. Even if they're billionaires and can afford to lose a few million, they expect Josh Childress to deliver wins and points. If Childress can't put up 20-30 points per night, he's going to be considered a failure.
So how's Josh doing in Greece? Not too good (given the expectations of him being the "American Superstar") He's played 3 games already and has pretty much stunk things up. It's so bad that Greek fans are already openly wondering if he's a waste of money. Truth is, he probably is. He's getting Superstar money in Europe but putting out like the role player he is. In his first game, he missed the game-winning jumper....is ANYBODY in the US surprised? We know he's not a clutch shooter right now, but the Greek fans got the over-hyped info on Childress so they were certainly disappointed.
He was never capable of being the man in the NBA, why would he all of sudden turn into a clutch shooter? Don't tell me getting extra money will turn you into "the man". Greek fans are going to be in for a disappointing season and their scorn for NBA players might only be starting.
Already, there are many European fans that think their Euro teams are just as good as the NBA players. This whole train of thought started back in 2004 when Manu Ginobili and the Argentina National team put a woodshed beating on Team USA. The Greek team also torched Team USA with pick and roll after pick and roll. Before the most recent Olympics, the Spanish team was the World Champion. So now with Josh Childress' sucky play, casual Euro fans might even consider US players even suckier.
Childress has averaged only about 11 points and 5 rebounds in his first 3 games. Those numbers would sound great in the NBA...if he was a $4 million role-player but the Greeks are paying Josh the equivalent of an NBA $13 million dollar salary. Sure these games would be considered "pre-season" or "friendlies" but still, it gives an early look at Josh's struggles.
Josh Childress' signing might be the start and end of the extravagent salaries paid to NBA role players. If he improves his play, then maybe he can redeem himself but as far as I can see, I don't see much improvement coming along in his game...he's just not a good fit for Euro ball. I wouldn't be surprised to hear he wants to come back to the NBA.