This picture makes me want to walk away from the NBA

[pauls931]

http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2010/0710/nba_u_bosh_wade_james_576.jpg

I mean seriously. How much do they have to whore this collusion? Players collaborating to stack teams? Sure it was legal and may not even work. But this whole thing is getting so stupid. I miss the not so distant past when it was about teams and not all about the players. I guess we have Nike/Reebok and ESPN to thank for this.

I mean damn! This reminds me of the WWE which everyone knows is fake. *

* I know my team will suck, but this about the big picture of the NBA.

[thedong]

LOL suns.
If you're owner wasnt so cheap, u would have a stackeeeed team with rondo, etc...

blame ur self sons, stop being a whiny ass bitch.

[Muser]

I don't get all of this, it's not like Miami is the first team to have a stacked roster.

[pauls931]

LOL suns.
If you're owner wasnt so cheap, u would have a stackeeeed team with rondo, etc...

blame ur self sons, stop being a whiny ass bitch.

This isn't about the suns or spurs, it's bigger. And you're a lousy troll at that.

[MiamiHeat]

I see a wonderful thing for sports.

3 unselfish players, sacrificing stats, sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contracts, uniting to win championships the right way- as a TEAM. NO individual glory bullshit.

If anything, this rewinds back the NBA before the Jordan era of the "Me me me" superstar that influenced players like Iverson, Kobe, Shaq, etc

We going back to Magic Lakers, and Bird Celtics days.

I love it.

[boston.balla]

I see a wonderful thing for sports.

3 unselfish players, sacrificing stats, sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contracts, uniting to win championships the right way- as a TEAM. NO individual glory bullshit.

If anything, this rewinds back the NBA before the Jordan era of the "Me me me" superstar that influenced players like Iverson, Kobe, Shaq, etc

We going back to Magic Lakers, and Bird Celtics days.

I love it.

i can't agree more... pull off all the huge bullshit parades and smokescreens and it is really a nice thing to do.

[BullsDynasty]

I agree with O.P, its fine that you stacked a team with 3 superstars. But the way they are dealing with it like they're rockstars is ridiculous.

[024]

while it is a nice gesture similar to duncan taking less money to help the spurs, greed balances out the NBA. don't want every superstar running to the lakers/celtics unselfishly chasing a championship, playing for the MLE. this is also a hard feat to pull off. heat risked everything to sign these three stars. the collaboration was there but if bosh and lebron changed their minds about miami, wade could be very well headed to chicago. i don't really see this becoming a trend just because so many planets have to align first. but there might be a few more superstar FA pairings in the future.

[Wombatzu]

Lebron still looks guilty in that pic...

[boutons_deux]

"like they're rockstars"

pro sports are show business, all show, all business, very little about athletics. There isn't enough players/coaching/GM talent in the world to man 30 teams, so we end up with 20 teams that are crap, uncompetitive, and 2000+ games out of 2500 games per season that are cynical, no-interest, no-effort, unwatchable crapfests.

[BadOne]

Wade looks like a happy pimp with his two new bitches. LOL.

[TheMACHINE]

3 unselfish players, sacrificing stats, sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contracts, uniting to win championships the right way- as a TEAM. NO individual glory bullshit.

I love it.

How much do you think Lebron and Bosh saved in Salary Taxes for going to Florida?

[MiamiHeat]

How much do you think Lebron and Bosh saved in Salary Taxes for going to Florida?

but they still sacrificed bigger contracts.

which means they will have less money than had they signed a bigger contract, regardless of any tax breaks in FL, right?

[Drachen]

http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2010/0710/nba_u_bosh_wade_james_576.jpg

i mean seriously. How much do they have to whore this collusion? Players collaborating to stack teams? Sure it was legal and may not even work. But this whole thing is getting so stupid. I miss the not so distant past when it was about teams and not all about the players. I guess we have nike/reebok and espn to thank for this.

I mean damn! This reminds me of the wwe which everyone knows is fake. *

* i know my team will suck, but this about the big picture of the nba.

oh my god. . . . That's bosh's music! It looks like the miami thrice are about to lay a smackdown!

[ploto]

I have to give kudos to 3 20-something guys seemingly out-thinking a bunch of NBA GM's and experts-- all who swore they would never give up a penny to join the same team.

[Ashy Larry]

sad thing about that is one of the worst fan bases are the recipient. Go into a sports bar in South Florida before this and you see six people including the owner and two bartenders

[BRHornet45]

son I've been preaching this for years. some understand, some will never understand, and some just don't want to understand ... the NBA is rigged, controlled, and all about ENTERTAINMENT AND RATINGS before ANYTHING else. that picture actually looks like its from an episode of WWE Monday Night Raw.

[HarlemHeat37]

http://www.txcn.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/v3/02-13-2010.NMC_13AllStar_LeBron_MAIN1.GNJ2P3P2Q.1.jpg

This picture should make you feel better, TBH..

[EIC]

You celebrate the insurgence of adolescent-looking Euro-fanboys, but complain when a star-studded team guarantees to start pumping out highlight-reel play after highlight-reel play?

:wtf

[EmptyMan]

Should have done it before Kobe got #5 over duncan. Gawddamnit :depressed

[sabar]

I don't see a problem, 95% of the players in the league would take the money over the championships. I doubt this happens again in the next decade.

[SourCandy]

i can't agree more... pull off all the huge bullshit parades and smokescreens and it is really a nice thing to do.


I see a wonderful thing for sports.

3 unselfish players, sacrificing stats, sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contracts, uniting to win championships the right way- as a TEAM. NO individual glory bullshit.

If anything, this rewinds back the NBA before the Jordan era of the "Me me me" superstar that influenced players like Iverson, Kobe, Shaq, etc

We going back to Magic Lakers, and Bird Celtics days.

I love it.
as a team huh..

thought a nba team had 5 players not 3 :lol

[boston.balla]

oh my god. . . . That's bosh's music! It looks like the miami thrice are about to lay a smackdown!

lol that's a really good nickname for them as a group. :toast


I don't see a problem, 95% of the players in the league would take the money over the championships. I doubt this happens again in the next decade.

true that. If people would do it the league would be freakin awesome like the 80s cause
1) great players would make stakked teams => epic playoffs
2)those that are left behind (single star on a team) will really push to put theirselves on the map at least putting up crazy stats to get themselves on stacked teams.
3) rookies would be relly pushed to develop.

1),2),3) => more competion, more quality. I think the jordan-pippen/kobe-shaq era didn't do nba enough good as the showtime/bird celts/bad boys/ fofofo.

Only when the teams are fucking stacked true rivalry (team, not player) appears cause you can get better only marginally each year so teams gotta really push themselves to be better.

[Basketballgirl25]

I agree with O.P, its fine that you stacked a team with 3 superstars. But the way they are dealing with it like they're rockstars is ridiculous.

If they want rockstars in the NBA they should at least go after the good ones:lol, Lebron, Wade, and Bosh are deff not rockstars they are anything but that:toast

[Basketballgirl25]

I see a wonderful thing for sports.

3 unselfish players, sacrificing stats, sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contracts, uniting to win championships the right way- as a TEAM. NO individual glory bullshit.

If anything, this rewinds back the NBA before the Jordan era of the "Me me me" superstar that influenced players like Iverson, Kobe, Shaq, etc

We going back to Magic Lakers, and Bird Celtics days.

I love it.

you say they are sacrificing Money, they are still making a shitload of money so I see no sacrificing their. When they all play for free I'll say that is sacrificing.:toast

[Killakobe81]

Personally I dont mind ...makes next year's potential Lakers Heat Finals epic ...

BUt with state income tax and the sign/trade they didnt lose much $ at all (Bosh/Lebron)

Wade is the one who sacrificed the most ...

My only issue is "the Decision" and th talk of 8 straight titles by a a guy who has barely sniffed one ...

I say bring it ...

[birdy219]

If you didn't leave the NBA after Stern's collusion with LA and Boston, then why leave now? :rolleyes

Where was all of this uproar with the lopsided trades in LA and Boston?

Boston has gotten old and Stern needs a new Boston in the East to compete against his pet franchise. :greedy

So either realize that this is no coincidence or accept the fact that Stern has declared that LA will be in the finals every year and whoever they face is irrelevant as long as his babies are there. Now granted he doesn't care if they win EVERY year, just that they make it there because of the almighty dollar. :nope

God Bless the NBA. :toast

As to the other 28 team fans, we might as well jump on one of the bandwagons because lord Stern has sealed the fates of all of our teams with his blatant rigging for his pets. :depressed

I shall watch with the hope that some team can mess up his master plan.
I just can't see any right now. :(

[jermaine]

If Bosh & Wade only was with Mia, an LaBrick went to the Bulls there wouldve been great competition in the East. They took that away! I say the spurs will beat'em in the finals in 6 gms!

[himat]

That does look like 3 guys entering the ring.:lmao

:lmao At the guy who said is that Bosh's music?

[himat]

I see a wonderful thing for sports.

3 unselfish players, sacrificing stats, sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contracts, uniting to win championships the right way- as a TEAM. NO individual glory bullshit.

If anything, this rewinds back the NBA before the Jordan era of the "Me me me" superstar that influenced players like Iverson, Kobe, Shaq, etc

We going back to Magic Lakers, and Bird Celtics days.

I love it.

Meh its more like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird joining forces...think about it.

Don't worry guys Kobe and co. will take care of these fools.

[midnightpulp]

Meh its more like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird joining forces...think about it.

Don't worry guys Kobe and co. will take care of these fools.

Change your account color to purple and your favorite team to the Lakers already, sheesh.

[daslicer]

Meh its more like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird joining forces...think about it.

Don't worry guys Kobe and co. will take care of these fools.

Please do us a favor make your team the Lakers and also get rid of that stupid avatar of the ugly masked man. We know you are what they call a Kobetard I just wonder how deep in your mouth Kobe has his dick.

[cobbler]

:lol at sacrificing. None of those spoiled, arrogant, catered to their whole lives players have had to sacrifice shit in thier lives. And I am talking the whole NBA... not just these 3. Yes there are exception but for the majority all these guy have led storied lives and wanted for nothing.

[himat]

Change your account color to purple and your favorite team to the Lakers already, sheesh.

The Pistons are in rebuilding mode. I admire Kobe's game and work ethic and so if I'll have to root for someone who has a chance it will be the Lakers.

To be honest with you I would rather see the Magic win it all, but with Vince in the mix I don't see that happening.

[MiamiHeat]

Meh its more like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird joining forces...think about it.

Don't worry guys Kobe and co. will take care of these fools.

Are you trying to say that Bird > Kareem Abdul-Jabbar?

Magic and Kareem are both better than Larry.

and they were on the same team. Doesn't hurt them any.

[midnightpulp]

Collusion didn't make me leave and neither will these legitimate signings.

[Mr Bones]

I think it's all pretty simple. People watched Kevin Garnett be the highest paid player in Minnesota, win the MVP, and never get anywhere. Then he went to Boston and scored fewer points, grabbed fewer rebounds, had less of the glory, and won an NBA championship. When asked during a press conference about LeBron's situation, Garnett went out on a limb and honestly said, "sometimes loyalty can hurt you." It's true. Cleveland had seven years to build around him, and they couldn't land one player that was better than Kobe's 3 or 4 best teammates. He never got a Ginobili or a Tony Parker. Even Stephen Jackson would've been better than anyone he had. LeBron's looking at the big picture, as he should. He wants to win championships, and he won't do it with Drew Gooden as his best teammate (as in 2007) or with Antawn Jamison. Conspiracy theories, Cleveland disappointment, and intimidated fans of other teams aside, LeBron made what he thought was the smartest move necessary to win championships. I didn't like the TV spectacle much either, but in terms of basketball IQ, the guy did made a great move.

[MiamiHeat]

your post makes too much sense for this forum, Mr Bones.

I bet if Kevin Garnett can go back and do everything over again, Minny would be fucked and watch KG go somewhere else of his OWN CHOOSING after KG's rookie contract.

[ohmwrecker]

Am I the only one who doesn't give a shit about 631?

[Basketballgirl25]

I shall watch with the hope that some team can mess up his master plan.
I just can't see any right now. :(

the only way to mess up his master plan is for a lockout to happen, which could happen and will be good for the NBA, they can fix it all:toast

[Spursmania]

Wade looks damn giddy. Like he just can't believe it...

[ata]

... sacrificing MONEY at least $2mil per season each by taking smaller contract....

They sacrified exactlly nothing, because different taxation in Florida.

[Danny.Zhu]

Should have done it before Kobe got #5 over duncan. Gawddamnit :depressed

I agree...

[TDMVPDPOY]

wtf is bosh acting all hard and shit in that promo introduction??? dude plz

[The Franchise]

wtf is bosh acting all hard and shit in that promo introduction??? dude plz

He actually looked pretty gay to me.

[Basketballgirl25]

He actually looked pretty gay to me.

well did you think he wouldn't I mean look they are all gay, that's why they all want to play together it's not to win, they all have mad love for each other

[MiamiHeat]

They sacrified exactlly nothing, because different taxation in Florida.

wrong

They gave up $2mil per season.

It's irrelevant what the tax breaks are.

They still gave up $2mil. They would have $2 mil per season more AND the tax breaks.

[Basketballgirl25]

wrong

They gave up $2mil per season.

It's irrelevant what the tax breaks are.

They still gave up $2mil. They would have $2 mil per season more AND the tax breaks.

they aren't giving up anything really, only way I see they are giving up anything if they are making 100 bucks a week, other then that they make a shit load of money anyway they aren't giving up much 2mil per season to them is prob like 5 bucks for us:lol