Welcome to the Basketball Hangover. I write about what’s happening in the NBA daily, even when COVID has ravaged the league.
Draymond Green had a rant that COULD change some things. Or not.
Earlier on Monday, the Detroit Pistons decided they wanted to sit out Blake Griffin with the intention of trading him or, if they couldn’t find a trade partner, buy him out so he could go to a contender.
A few hours later, the Cleveland Cavaliers did the same thing with Andre Drummond. This did not set well with someone from an old rival team, who the Cavs went against on Monday night.
So here’s a rant from the Warriors’ Draymond Green:
(VIDEO CREDIT: Bay Area ABC.)
Basically, he doesn’t like that teams get to announce players they want to trade but yet the players themselves can’t ask for trades. And he has an excellent point for this double standard. Quite frankly, it’s long overdue.
Organizations do get some flack for the things Green said but not as much as players do. Players can only control so much of their environment, right? Yes, players should take the blame if they decided that the off-court lifestyle is much more important than their actual job. But teams and teammates can do something about reeling a player in and making them feel comfortable in their situation.
But if players want to be in a better situation for themselves, why can’t they ask about it publicly? Maybe in the league’s eyes, they don’t want it to be the wild wild west but players aren’t also going to just ask out every time a situation gets bad. Plus these players respect their teammates and coaching staff enough to not ask for a trade every time out. And it’s so weird about the trade rules, too. Sometimes, you see a player get fined for asking out and, sometimes, the NBA lets it go by.
And this two-way street that sometimes doesn’t exist also happens off the court. John Wall (who, coincidentally, went against his old team on Monday) has said that the Wizards told him that the Wizards weren’t going to trade him. Then suddenly, he’s off to Houston. That’s bad when the team doesn’t even tell their franchise player what they’re going to do with him.
Although it’s probably something I would rather keep behind closed doors, if a player wants a trade, then let them opine about it. Obviously, it’s bad optics if they keep bringing it up. Then that becomes a distraction. But if a team can declare that they’re going to make this player available in a trade, I don’t see the difference of a player wanting a trade. Why would the league fine a player that just wants to be in a better overall situation for them? Draymond also brought up mental health; wouldn’t a player be affected mentally in a situation they’re not happy in? I know most of us would hate to be in that circumstance, no matter what job we have.
This may amount to nothing (or maybe in Draymond’s case, it would amount to a fine). But I think the league should take a serious listen on what Green said. Give the players more say in terms of their own situations.
Bullet Passes
Warriors/Cavs ain’t what it used to be. The Dubs won by 31 and Stephen Curry went for 36 points. Noted ranter Draymond Green was in a giving mood that night; he had 16 assists.
Paul George has missed the last 5 games while Kawhi Leonard was out with a leg contusion. Still, the Clippers paid Marcus Morris a lot of money in the offseason and he scored 32 points in under 26 minutes.
The Heat continue to struggle at 11-16. I keep waiting for them to catch fire.
As mentioned earlier, Wall returned to Washington for the first time since he got dealt. He went for 29 points and 11 assists but his former co-star Bradley Beal went for 37. Russell Westbrook had his 6th triple-double of the year with 16-13-15.
The Nets continue to score piles. Kyrie Irving dropped a 40-piece while James Harden went for 29-13-14. Brooklyn has won three in a row.
Gosh, Julius Randle continues to have a huge season. 44 points for the former Laker draft pick in the Knicks‘ win over the Hawks.
Imagine an aggressive Ben Simmons on offense, right? Well, he dropped 42 points. Tobias Harris went for 36 points as both stars try to make up for Joel Embiid‘s absence.
But when that team they’re going against is on fire, you gotta bring all the hoses. Jordan Clarkson went for 40 points off the bench as the Jazz continue to dominate teams. Utah has their 8th straight double U. Now that I think about it, the Jazz winning a title could be a massive redemption story. Y’all know what I’m talking about.
Anthony Davis had an injury scare against Denver on Sunday. At least, no rupture on his Achilles (MYTHOLOGICAL HERO AY-CHILL-US!!!). He does have that aggravated tendinosis and a calf strain so he will be evaluated again in 2-3 weeks. The team did say that they would take his time for a return. It could be a lot of wear and tear, too, since he just had that two-month turnaround after winning a championship.
(That doesn’t explain LeBron James, though, who is a freak of nature.)
NBA Scoreboard
Feb. 15, 2021
Watch This Play
Former Oklahoma City Thunder draftees connect on this. The bearded one to Uncle Jeff Green.
Beard set up Jeff Green perfectly 🔨 pic.twitter.com/ZruRRgdHxh
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 16, 2021
Everyone, please take care of yourselves during this pandemic. And that goes for everyone involved with the NBA as well.
You can find Rey-Rey on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
You can also check out Rey-Rey’s podcast, Rey-Rey Is Fundamental, for more basketball content and, really, whatever else.