Why A Super-Friends Team Would NOT Work
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
The NBA has been buzzing over the last few weeks, notably over a possible Carmelo Anthony trade out of New York. Of course, it coincided with LeBron's venting that the Cavaliers need one more playmaker in order for them to repeat. Of course rumors shot out that Carmelo might join his best friend in Cleveland en route to win a championship. It is just that Cleveland said "no." And then the rumor then shot out that Carmelo might end up joining his other buddy Chris Paul with the Clippers. And while all of this is going on, Dwyane Wade blasted his teammates in Chicago to which teammates fired back at him, thus wondering if Wade's tenure in Chicago is already on shaky ground.
Which has brought up more than a few people saying: why don't the Super-Friends finally join forces and become a team?
I'm for it.
The reasoning is simple: I want to see how much it WON'T work.
Not just in sports, but also in life, sometimes working with your best friends is a bad idea. You can talk about doing it. You can imagine the fun it would be of all the good times together at work. And you get amped up for it. But then when you actually do it, you are about to go at each other's throats the entire time and the tension constantly mounts to the point where it isn't fun and you either stop remaining friends or just want out of that place.
The trio of Barkley, Olajuwon, and Pippen was an epic fail in Houston.
The one sports example I have is in basketball and that was when Scottie Pippen and Charles Barkley were teammates in Houston. Granted they were never overly close, but they were teammates on the Dream Team in 92 and again in 96. Barkley also re-structured his contract so Houston could get Pippen and be the favorites out in the West. After one disappointing season and constant bickering with Barkley, Pippen wanted out and got traded to Portland. And of course, both Barkley & Pippen not ones to hide their feelings pretty much bashed each other when Pippen was on the way out.
You can also make one with Terrell Owens and Donovan McNabb in Philadelphia, who were close before Owens pretty much balked at going to Baltimore and wanting to play in Philadelphia and his friend McNabb. After one season, Owens constantly ripped McNabb in the media and the Eagles crash-landed after 5 winning years.
LeBron & Wade worked out well as well could be in Miami.
"But Wade & LeBron worked out great in Miami and went to 4 NBA Finals together and won two of those!" Yes, yes they did. However, the reasoning that LeBron left was more of Miami was ultimately it Wade's team. And from Day One, LeBron was doing things the Miami way or Wade's way, which was not what he cared for. Yes, he followed how things were in Miami in order to get his championship. However, looking back now after the 2014 NBA Finals when San Antonio thumped the Heat, it had a vibe that LeBron's mind was elsewhere in that whole series. He just seemed like he didn't have the drive anymore in Miami to do well because I think many were considering him as a guy "leeching" on other good players to win a championship and it started to bother him and that he was not "the guy." I believe it bothered him throughout his time in Miami.
And that is where the problems would persist if the Super-Friends joined up. You have 4 guys (I am including Paul merely in part because he is close with them, though I think he is somewhat of an outlier), that really ran the league from 2004 to the last few years and got whatever they really wanted, whether it is trades, contract demands, pushing teams to sign guys, etc. now seeing their grip on their teams and the NBA loosen with the likes of Curry, Durant, Westbrook, etc. being the new guys. And you somewhat sense there is tension among the players with it. And right now, there are issues.
LeBron's griping of "playmakers" alienated his teammates, coach, and front office alike. Tristain Thompson, pretty much responded in kind to LeBron's playmakers comment saying all the right things (minus the expletives) of playing harder and "playing with whoever the hell they have." Tyronn Lue pulled LeBron aside as did David Griffin about the quote.
We know about Carmelo's situation as the Knicks are really no longer Carmelo's team and Phil is about tired of handling him. And it seems like the Knicks, with all their stars, are just in neutral and many blame Anthony's ways once again of not being more of a team guy. Nobody has really come out and said it, but Derrick Rose seems more aloof in New York than he ever had in Chicago. And nothing seems to have changed in that case.
As for Wade, it seems like his teammates outside of Jimmy Butler are tired of his work ethic and his attitude. I'm not so sure if Wade was thinking the Bulls would just hand him the keys to the franchise alongside Butler, but it seems to be the players are not responding to his ways and Wade is having one of the worst seasons in his career to this point on a team who has massively disappointed and again, chemistry issues.
So maybe the answer is, let's see how the Super-Friends join up. They all seem to be unhappy in some manner. So just do it.
And then we can see how much of a blow-up it would be. Let's face it: they may be Super-Friends, but these are franchise guys........or guys who were faces of the franchise that won't really take a back seat to anybody. Not even each other. Carmelo has been ridiculed by many (myself included) for not being a team player. How will it be when he isn't moving the ball to LeBron or Wade for an open shot? How will they respond? How will Wade respond if Anthony isn't doing enough hard work in practice? How will ANY of them respond to criticism from each other? Will it be a bickering issue that will plague the team? And given LeBron's rumored situation with Cavs owner Dan Gilbert, where would they play at? Whose team is it? Who would coach them and keep them under wraps? These guys seem to do what THEY want to do, not what the coaches want them to do. It is why coaches have been fired time after time in New York and Cleveland. The only guys possibly that would be able to manage all of them would be either Gregg Popovich (I don't think the Spurs would be getting rid of all their players for those 3) or Coach K (and he won't leave Duke anytime soon). Any other coach would be a puppet to the Super-Friends.
Wade seems a bit frustrated in Chicago.
Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
If I had to guess how the Super-Friends would end up for a season, I doubt it would work well. Yes, probably a playoff, especially in the weak Eastern Conference. But sooner or later, that drive of wanting to be "the guy" will be an issue. And it will be problematic for the other two to handle. And pending on what team they're on, they will probably lay claim as the face of the franchise. I know it worked in Miami with LeBron and Wade, but I still think LeBron was ready to leave and be his own franchise player again. He really wasn't the face of the Heat. It will take a massive ego check for the others. And to add on, the three of them are past 30, with Wade already in his mid-30's. Yes, he is still effective, but he still isn't the same guy he was 10 years ago and sooner or later it won't be there anymore. So if the three wanted to get together for a final hurrah of their careers, it probably is too late for a championship run together. That has passed.
But it would be interesting to see how they would not get that championship.
-Fan in the Obstructed Seat
