50 cent
09-01-2005, 10:18 AM
Seller's Remorse?
Fin & Nick Join SA Harem
By Mike Fisher -- DallasBasketball.com
Imagine Michael Finley as your ex-girlfriend.
You put her to the curb for good reasons. You two didn't "fit'' anymore. There was no future. Girl was expensive! And she didn't, you know, perform like she used to.
But then she gets a new boyfriend. And it's HIM. Your rival. Your nemesis. Your Lois Lane is now going out with your Lex Luthor!
And you have "seller's remorse.''
We're going to get over this. Michael Finley, a face-of-the-franchise guy in Dallas, is now a San Antonio Spur. So is another of your old exes, Nick Van Exel. (What's this nemesis of yours running down there, a harem?)
Forget for a moment that the Spurs are more loaded than ever, with flashy free agents Finley and Van Exel taking spots on their bench, joining a roster that already features the game's best player in Tim Duncan, an emerging superstar in Manu Ginobili, a standout point guard in Tony Parker, an ace defender in Bruce Bowen, a playoff go-to-guy in Robert Horry and maybe the NBA's best coach in Gregg Popovich.
Forget for a moment, too, that Finley and Nick aren't what they were, that this isn't 2002, that neither of them is likely to get the sort of minutes that would allow them to be the 20-ppg guys they once were -- and that if they ever get that sort of burn, they're likely to be exposed as the down-side-of-their-career players the Mavs believe them to be.
It still hurts. Almost makes you want to "drunk dial'' Michael, doesn't it?
(Sidebar issue: I had a nightmare last night. Nash was playing for the Suns. Fin was playing for the Spurs. Dirk was playing for the Lakers. J-Ho was playing for the Rockets. Aguirre, Harper and Blackman were playing for the Sonics, T'Wolves and Blazers. And in none of those move-outs did we get anything back. A nightmare, I tell ya.)
Unless you assume that Finley's game has so slipped that it's skidded over the end of the earth, San Antonio is the exact wrong place for him -- if you are a Dallas fan. He is in a prime position to hurt the Mavs, in large part because he'll play a small part. Unlike in Phoenix, where the Suns offered him a starting job, Finley and Nick will be put in positions where they can succeed. Ask Finley to drive, or play defense, or load up on 40 minutes a game? Nope. Do that, you'll see the slippage. Ask Finley to be a jump shooter waiting for the kickout pass from a double-teamed Duncan? Yeah, he can do that. ... and if he misses a few shots, Pop buries him on the bench until tommorow.
Said Popovich: "I was very blunt with him about this being a bench situation, so he knew the lay of the land. I'm thrilled he came because he, on his own, decided what to do. I honestly felt that he might choose other situations, for a variety of reasons. When we got the word he was coming to San Antonio, I felt we were very fortunate."
It's interesting, by the way, that while other teams put on flashy recruiting shows, SA simply sent Pop to Chicago for a meeting. There is no right way or wrong way to recruit guys, I always say, but there is a Duncan Way. The coach comes to your home, offers you a chance to play with Duncan, shakes your hand and leaves. And you sign with the Spurs.
"We didn't send mariachi bands or birthday cards or breakfast in bed," Popovich said. "I talked to him in Chicago and said, 'If you come with us we want it to be for the right reasons and do it the way we do it. If you don't come, you don't come.' Spoken like a playa with a full dance card. Which takes us back to the girlfriend scenario. Check out two quotes.
One, from the guy who kicked the chick out:
Said Mavs owner Mark Cuban: "I wish Mike all the best off the court. As always, I hope the Spurs lose 82 games."
Sounds like any other guy who just went through a breakup, right?
Two, from the guy who just got the girl(s):
Both Finley and Van Exel checked in with Duncan for his thoughts before they made their decision. Duncan told NVE, "We would love to have you. ... but we don't need you."
Spoken like the new boyfriend who is running a dang harem, right?
:rollin
Fin & Nick Join SA Harem
By Mike Fisher -- DallasBasketball.com
Imagine Michael Finley as your ex-girlfriend.
You put her to the curb for good reasons. You two didn't "fit'' anymore. There was no future. Girl was expensive! And she didn't, you know, perform like she used to.
But then she gets a new boyfriend. And it's HIM. Your rival. Your nemesis. Your Lois Lane is now going out with your Lex Luthor!
And you have "seller's remorse.''
We're going to get over this. Michael Finley, a face-of-the-franchise guy in Dallas, is now a San Antonio Spur. So is another of your old exes, Nick Van Exel. (What's this nemesis of yours running down there, a harem?)
Forget for a moment that the Spurs are more loaded than ever, with flashy free agents Finley and Van Exel taking spots on their bench, joining a roster that already features the game's best player in Tim Duncan, an emerging superstar in Manu Ginobili, a standout point guard in Tony Parker, an ace defender in Bruce Bowen, a playoff go-to-guy in Robert Horry and maybe the NBA's best coach in Gregg Popovich.
Forget for a moment, too, that Finley and Nick aren't what they were, that this isn't 2002, that neither of them is likely to get the sort of minutes that would allow them to be the 20-ppg guys they once were -- and that if they ever get that sort of burn, they're likely to be exposed as the down-side-of-their-career players the Mavs believe them to be.
It still hurts. Almost makes you want to "drunk dial'' Michael, doesn't it?
(Sidebar issue: I had a nightmare last night. Nash was playing for the Suns. Fin was playing for the Spurs. Dirk was playing for the Lakers. J-Ho was playing for the Rockets. Aguirre, Harper and Blackman were playing for the Sonics, T'Wolves and Blazers. And in none of those move-outs did we get anything back. A nightmare, I tell ya.)
Unless you assume that Finley's game has so slipped that it's skidded over the end of the earth, San Antonio is the exact wrong place for him -- if you are a Dallas fan. He is in a prime position to hurt the Mavs, in large part because he'll play a small part. Unlike in Phoenix, where the Suns offered him a starting job, Finley and Nick will be put in positions where they can succeed. Ask Finley to drive, or play defense, or load up on 40 minutes a game? Nope. Do that, you'll see the slippage. Ask Finley to be a jump shooter waiting for the kickout pass from a double-teamed Duncan? Yeah, he can do that. ... and if he misses a few shots, Pop buries him on the bench until tommorow.
Said Popovich: "I was very blunt with him about this being a bench situation, so he knew the lay of the land. I'm thrilled he came because he, on his own, decided what to do. I honestly felt that he might choose other situations, for a variety of reasons. When we got the word he was coming to San Antonio, I felt we were very fortunate."
It's interesting, by the way, that while other teams put on flashy recruiting shows, SA simply sent Pop to Chicago for a meeting. There is no right way or wrong way to recruit guys, I always say, but there is a Duncan Way. The coach comes to your home, offers you a chance to play with Duncan, shakes your hand and leaves. And you sign with the Spurs.
"We didn't send mariachi bands or birthday cards or breakfast in bed," Popovich said. "I talked to him in Chicago and said, 'If you come with us we want it to be for the right reasons and do it the way we do it. If you don't come, you don't come.' Spoken like a playa with a full dance card. Which takes us back to the girlfriend scenario. Check out two quotes.
One, from the guy who kicked the chick out:
Said Mavs owner Mark Cuban: "I wish Mike all the best off the court. As always, I hope the Spurs lose 82 games."
Sounds like any other guy who just went through a breakup, right?
Two, from the guy who just got the girl(s):
Both Finley and Van Exel checked in with Duncan for his thoughts before they made their decision. Duncan told NVE, "We would love to have you. ... but we don't need you."
Spoken like the new boyfriend who is running a dang harem, right?
:rollin