A time for moves. A time for analysis. <\/p>\n
Trades and free-agent signings arrive, and that\u2019s when the experts in strategy and salary structure shine. Fit, percentiles, trends, cap usage, contract exceptions\u2026 <\/p>\n
Every move invites a deep dive. Partly to cut through the noise that NBA chatter generates most of the year, a debate fully polarized between the advanced analysis mentioned above and the most childish hot takes. The kind that, in one of the most thrilling NBA Finals in recent memory, can\u2019t find talking points beyond the trite \u201cIs X a superstar?\u201d or \u201cDoes X team have what it takes to be a champion?,\u201d followed by arguments with all the depth of instant broth. <\/p>\n
However, this offseason<\/em> has produced a few moves that dodge both approaches. They stray from rationality and are unlikely to enter the ring-chasing orbit that rules the hottest debate shows on American TV.<\/p>\n Though none of these three moves drastically move the needle for the teams in question, they all come with very different motivations. <\/p>\n From the moment he set foot in the Phoenix Suns\u2019 offices, Matt Ishbia approached his role as owner with a touch of megalomania. Robert Sarver, vilified and exiled for fostering toxic work conditions and xenophobic behavior throughout the organization, was already despised by Suns fans for his well-known stinginess. Ishbia, like a bull in a china shop, aimed to distance himself as far as possible from that idea of austerity and, on his first day as owner, shipped Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, and five first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant. <\/p>\n Following that same playbook and in just over two years, the magnate has cobbled together a Big Three by gutting the rotation and crippling the defense beyond shameful levels, firing three head coaches, hiring three more, forfeiting future draft control, paying record luxury-tax bills, and cutting Bradley Beal after running headfirst into the difficulties posed by his salary and no-trade clause. <\/p>\n A little over a year ago, the owner claimed<\/a> he was \u201cin a great position\u201d with the team. Such words come from a man whose business background taught him to expect success and perpetual victory (though there\u2019s an asterisk<\/a> attached to them). The NBA handed him a crash course in failure, and even the fiercest Wall Street shark needs solid ground after a bender like this.<\/p>\n\n
Solid ground<\/h2>\n