Mike Miller exercises $2.8 million player option for 2015-16
June 30, 2015Ball Played: Umpire cannot interfere with Indians win
June 30, 2015Happy Tuesday WFNY!
Tonight is a big night for the NBA. Or, well, I guess it’s technically tomorrow? I don’t know. However you want to look at it, at 12:01 am tonight/tomorrow morning, NBA free agency officially kicks off.
Last year was a pretty nervous time for a lot of Cavs fans. Even right up to the midnight hour, there was a lot of doubt among Cavs fans as to whether Kyrie would sign a long term deal or not. Peter Vecsey had reported that the Cavaliers wouldn’t even offer Kyrie a max contract.
Contrary 2 report, reason Cavs won't offer Kyrie max extension: because they know he wouldn't accept & don't want 2 look bad#goinggoinggone
— Peter Vecsey (@PeterVecsey1) May 26, 2014
You had Brian Windhorst very bluntly pointing out that Kyrie’s camp had been putting it out there for years that Kyrie wanted out of Cleveland:
The truth is [Kyrie’s] camp has been putting out there for years – years – that he doesn’t want to be in Cleveland. That they don’t want him in Cleveland. He doesn’t like Mike Brown. He didn’t like Chris Grant. He doesn’t like Dion Waiters. He’s already gotten a General Manager fired. He might get Mike Brown fired. This is the last time – once he signs he loses all of his leverage – so this is the last time he gets to enact leverage. I know he’s said all the right things so, fine, on July 1, when they offer a max contract – which they will – and I don’t even know if he’s a max player, but you have to sign him – sign a five year, no out. That’s what a max contract is. A max contract is five years, no out. If you want out or you want three years, that’s not a max contract. You want three years? Okay, we’ll give you $12 million a year. We’re not giving you the full thing.
I’m just giving you my feel right now and my feel is that he’s not crazy about [signing the full max extension] unless he gets everything checked off across the board.
And the other thing is: if the Cavs ever dream of having LeBron, it’s not going to be with Kyrie there. LeBron and Kyrie have drifted apart in the last few years, even to the point that if the Cavs wanted to get LeBron they would maybe trade Kyrie for someone who would fit better with LeBron. And I’m not making that up. That line of thinking was not originated by me. That’s just the truth.
It can be easy to forget about now, but this was the climate we were in heading into free agency last year. There was no LeBron James, no Kevin Love. It was just Kyrie Irving and the massive question as to whether or not he would sign.
I happened to be up when it started, and just after midnight, I thought I was being snarky and tweeted:
Did Kyrie agree to sign yet?
— Andrew Schnitkey (@RockWFNY) July 1, 2014
I then went to bed. I figured we wouldn’t have news about Kyrie for days, if not weeks. Turns out, I only would have had to stay up two more hours:
I'm here for the long haul Cleveland!!! and I'm ecstatic!! Super excited and blessed to be here and apart of something special.#ClevelandKID
— Kyrie Irving (@KyrieIrving) July 1, 2014
So what does any of this have to do with this year? Well, I think it has a lot to do with this year. Mostly, it serves as a reminder that no matter how firm a grasp we think we have on a situation, none of us really know anything. The media reports the things they hear, and I don’t think they lie, exaggerate, or misrepresent the info they receive at all. But I do know the info rarely comes from the player himself. It typically comes from their “camp”. Sometimes that’s an agent, sometimes it’s a friend, sometime a close associate. But a player is extremely unlikely to talk about their free agency plans with anyone in the media.
It’s important to remember this as we hear varying reports of Kevin Love’s interest in Cleveland vs his desire to leave. Or when we have headlines about LeBron and Love hanging out together poolside over the weekend. Or when we see Brian Windhorst and Zach Lowe report on what other executives in the NBA think Love is going to do. There is a lot of info swirling around, but at the end of the day, it’s all mostly irrelevant.
The truth is, this is pretty much an example of A/B testing. We have two scenarios. Either Kevin Love signs, or he leaves. And right now, only Kevin Love and his closest family and friends know what he’s thinking. Whether he stays or leaves, it won’t be validation or contention for the reports of other league executives. They are neither right or wrong. They are simply guessing based on the reports and info they have heard. But Love’s decision will be his decision alone and is not subject to the ebbs and flows of rumors. His decision doesn’t exist in some theoretical vacuum. It’s real life. It’s his decision and he’ll make it on the criteria that is most important to him.
At 12:01, the Cavaliers are going to offer him a max deal. I don’t expect him to sign it quickly like Kyrie did last year. For Love, this deal will dictate how the prime of his career plays out. So I fully expect him to take his time and really figure out what he wants to do. But you know what? I don’t know anything either. Maybe he really will just accept the offer right away. I just don’t know. And that’s the lesson that last year taught me.
I’m not going to stay up until midnight this year (probably not, anyway). I’m not really going into this with any expectations. As I explained on the WFNY podcast over the weekend, there’s really not much for the Cavs to do here. This really boils down to whether or not Kevin Love wants to try to win Championships every year with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. If that’s not good enough for him, what else can the Cavaliers do? I certainly don’t want Love to stay in Cleveland if that’s not what he really, truly wants.
Don’t get me wrong, I want Love to stay. The Cavaliers are so much better with him than without him. But I want him to want to stay. If this isn’t good enough for him, I’m not going to fault the Cavaliers. That doesn’t make the Andrew Wiggins trade a bad move. It was the right move to make. The Cavaliers succeeded in putting together a team that can seriously compete for Championships year in and year out. That’s all you can ask for. If a player doesn’t want to be a part of that, that’s on him. It’s not on the Cavaliers.
Some might say that the Cavaliers deserve blame for not doing more to make sure Love was fitting into the offense and being happy with his role. Perhaps. To a very, very, very slight degree, I can understand that point of view. However, this was only one year. Chemistry takes time. Plus, between LeBron missing time, Varejao’s injury, the trade, and Love’s lingering back issues, there wasn’t a lot of continuity to build on in this season. The team was mostly winging it.
And you know what? Despite all that, the offense with LeBron, Kyrie, and Love all on the floor together was pretty good. Incredibly good. It was great. It was elite. Just imagine how good this offense can become if they stick together and build on their success and develop more chemistry and build more continuity. That’s what is on the table for Kevin Love.
I’m not anxious about his free agency because I’m content with what the Cavaliers have built. Now Love just has to decide if being a part of this is what he wants, or if he wants to roll the dice with a different team. Either way, the Cavaliers did their part. I hope it’s enough for Kevin.
*****
New Music of the Week
This week is an easy pick for me. As much as it would be tempting to go with the Wavves and Cloud Nothings collaboration that was spontaneously released over the weekend, the truth is, that album, while really good, is going to take some time to fully absorb.
Rather, this week is one that I have been waiting for anxiously for seventeen years. In 1998, the Swedish punk band Refused released one of the most game changing albums ever made titled “The Shape of Punk To Come”.
The album was almost more of a manifesto than anything else. It completely broke down the idea of what punk music was and what it could become. It was ambitious. Musically, it borrowed from genres outside the stereotypically homogenous punk scene. It yearned to make a real difference. To this day it stands as one of my favorite albums ever made.
A year later, in 1999 Thursday would release their debut album, “Waiting”, and they would carry the torch for a new subset of punk. The idea that punk music had to more or less follow the strict I-IV-V power chord formula was broken.
Did Refused really predict a new sound for punk as a whole? Not really. But they did change the idea of what punk music had to be. It was ok for punk music to be experimental and ambitious and different. And with one larger than life album, Refused altered that perception forever. Unfortunately, the band broke up shortly after the album and left fans with a never-healing scar of desire for more.
Thankfully, the band reunited a few years ago, and today they have released their long awaited follow up album, “Freedom”. It’s only natural that people wanted or were expecting a Shape of Punk to Come Volume 2, but that’s not what this album is at all. “Freedom” is the natural progression from that album. It’s the logical conclusion to that manifesto.
“Freedom” is a simpler album. It’s more easily digested. There are more pop hooks in the song writing. But that doesn’t make it any less potent. The signature sound of Refused is still there in all its fury and glory.
I love this album. I am so glad that Refused reunited and are back together. And while I understand why some have been let down by this album, I actually think it’s a perfectly concise punk album in the style that feels completely natural to Refused. Is it as good as The Shape of Punk to Come? Of course not. Anyone expecting that was fooling themselves. But that doesn’t make me any less appreciative of having a new Refused album in 2015.
*****
Ok, that’s it from me for this week. Get some sleep tonight and try not to worry about the Cavs free agency too much. Have a great rest of your week!
10 Comments
Serious question: what benefit do “sources” get from whispering to reporters? Do these people in the players’ camps actually benefit in any way from starting (what usually amount to merely) rumors? I understand in some situations there is leverage to be gained, but while I don’t know everyone’s true motivations, I just feel like it’s more of a selfish ploy to see your leaked info in a headline.
Whatevs, I’m with Andrew – I’ll sleep well tonight knowing that if Kev wants the best combination of money and title chances, he’ll stay. If other things are more important, he’ll walk.
Ugh…screw you Cowherd.
He hates the midwest, especially Cleveland. Pretentious prick.
Mini-rant over.
It really depends. There’s no one simple, easy answer. Sometimes they do it as part of an exchange of information. Sometimes they talk because, well, its like having a big secret and you want to share it with someone. It makes you feel important. Sometimes they intentionally want to mislead. Sometimes they are providing info now in hopes of getting something in the future. But that’s why reports can be all over the place. Sometimes the same source will tell different reporters slightly different versions of the same piece of info. And it’s not always devious. Sometimes there’s just more trust with one guy so he gets a little deeper info.
I forgot about that bit of Windy “wisdom” – I’m normally defending the guy but wow, did he lay a stinker on that one.
So many experts, so little knowledge.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzLE3LescGQ
He’s missed a lot since joining the network he works for now.
It’s sad. He was a great beat reporter when he worked for the ABJ and PD and was super focused on evaluating the game itself vs. the game within the game. Now that he’s at ESPN he barely talks about the games and seems much more focused on what UNNAMED SOURCES have to say.
Thanks for the reply Andrew.
“Sometimes they are providing info now in hopes of getting something in the future.”
That’s really where my curiosity lies. What would they hope to get in return for info? I assume you mean from the reporter they’re providing the info to…
The first thing you have to decide if the source is actual. For some of these guys, that’s not the case.