The NBA is a Business by Lauren Beasley
Probably the biggest moment of the NBA off season so far has happen and it’s not necessarily the biggest trade or anything to happen but it has certainly caused a lot of controversy. Free agent Ray Allen has chosen to leave the Boston Celtics and join the Miami Heat.
Now he is being heavily scrutinized for his decision and is said to have no loyalty. Some are even comparing him to LeBron James.
Now first let me make this very clear, LeBron James and Ray Allen should not be compared. First off, LeBron James and Ray Allen did nothing wrong. I understand both of their reasons for leaving. I am not a Lebron fan at all but LeBron left because he felt like the Cavilers couldn’t help him win a championship which is fine. I can respect that. Now let me say this, I didn’t like the way LeBron announced he was leaving because I felt it was unnecessary and immature for him to have an hour long show to announce his decision but there was nothing wrong with him leaving. Just like there is nothing wrong with Ray Allen leaving the Celtics for the Heat.
So stop comparing Ray Allen and LeBron James because there is nothing to compare. Ray Allen did not have a televised show to say his destination. So let’s leave that alone.
Now let’s get to the heart of this conversation, you can’t say someone is necessarily being unloyal because you don’t like a team or a player or the decision they have made. The NBA is a business.
Players make decisions on what they want and need and apparently Ray Allen felt this was best for him. Plus if you really want to get technical, Boston has made it clear at times they didn’t want Allen or want to trade which is fine because once again this is a business and Boston at one point felt it was best to let him go.
You can’t have it both ways, players leave their teams all the time and play for other teams but each player is not scrutinized for their decision. I don’t understand how people can call Ray Allen unloyal for doing the same thing players like Steve Nash, Eric Gordon, Joe Johnson, Jason Kidd, etc., do and have done.
Once again I repeat the NBA is a business and just like teams have to make tough decisions, so do the players. Stop saying they have no loyalty because they make a decision you don’t like or agree with.
Now I admit I would have loved to see Ray Allen stay with the Celtics because I think he fits them well but he felt it was best for him to go the Heat. I didn’t hear anyone saying that Jason Terry was wrong or unloyal for leaving the Mavericks to go play for the Celtics.
Dwight Howard has decided that he wants to be traded and leave the Orlando Magic; I don’t hear anybody scrutinizing him for wanting to leave. Now we scrutinize him for changing his mind all the time and making bad decision but not once has he been scrutinized for wanting to leave the Magic.
Steve Nash I believe made a statement saying it would be hard for him to put on a Laker jersey, which is understandable because he played for Phoenix and has had some tough moments against the Lakers. Yet when he decided to join the Lakers, I didn’t hear anybody scrutinizing him for that.
There have been rumors that players like Nicholas Batum and Roy Hibbert may leave their respected teams and head elsewhere but once again I haven’t heard anyone say they have no loyalty.
Last year the Lakers traded Lamar Odom, some said they wronged him in some way by trading him. Odom even said he felt like they were unloyal to him. I personally never understood that, I can understand that you love your team and you want to stay but if you’re going to play in the NBA, you need to be prepared for change whether you like it or not. Just as a fan of the NBA you have to be prepared for players leaving or asking to be traded.
The reason I believe you don’t hear people scrutinize them or certain players is because most people either don’t care much for those players or teams or they feel like those players have good reasons for wanting to leave well guess what….so does Ray Allen and any other player who leaves their team to go to another team.
As I said and will continue to say, you can’t have it both ways and call someone unloyal because you don’t like their decision. This is a business, changes will be made, honestly if you can’t handle that you might not want to watch the NBA or get involved with any more sports.
As a sports writer and analyst, I admit story lines really drive the NBA. I enjoy it for the most part because it makes my job loveable until it gets out of hand like it did with LeBron James a couple years ago.
So once again I say, stop saying Ray Allen or any player or team has no loyalty because they leave their team or let a player go. The NBA is business. Players and teams do what they think is best for them, period.
Now he is being heavily scrutinized for his decision and is said to have no loyalty. Some are even comparing him to LeBron James.
Now first let me make this very clear, LeBron James and Ray Allen should not be compared. First off, LeBron James and Ray Allen did nothing wrong. I understand both of their reasons for leaving. I am not a Lebron fan at all but LeBron left because he felt like the Cavilers couldn’t help him win a championship which is fine. I can respect that. Now let me say this, I didn’t like the way LeBron announced he was leaving because I felt it was unnecessary and immature for him to have an hour long show to announce his decision but there was nothing wrong with him leaving. Just like there is nothing wrong with Ray Allen leaving the Celtics for the Heat.
So stop comparing Ray Allen and LeBron James because there is nothing to compare. Ray Allen did not have a televised show to say his destination. So let’s leave that alone.
Now let’s get to the heart of this conversation, you can’t say someone is necessarily being unloyal because you don’t like a team or a player or the decision they have made. The NBA is a business.
Players make decisions on what they want and need and apparently Ray Allen felt this was best for him. Plus if you really want to get technical, Boston has made it clear at times they didn’t want Allen or want to trade which is fine because once again this is a business and Boston at one point felt it was best to let him go.
You can’t have it both ways, players leave their teams all the time and play for other teams but each player is not scrutinized for their decision. I don’t understand how people can call Ray Allen unloyal for doing the same thing players like Steve Nash, Eric Gordon, Joe Johnson, Jason Kidd, etc., do and have done.
Once again I repeat the NBA is a business and just like teams have to make tough decisions, so do the players. Stop saying they have no loyalty because they make a decision you don’t like or agree with.
Now I admit I would have loved to see Ray Allen stay with the Celtics because I think he fits them well but he felt it was best for him to go the Heat. I didn’t hear anyone saying that Jason Terry was wrong or unloyal for leaving the Mavericks to go play for the Celtics.
Dwight Howard has decided that he wants to be traded and leave the Orlando Magic; I don’t hear anybody scrutinizing him for wanting to leave. Now we scrutinize him for changing his mind all the time and making bad decision but not once has he been scrutinized for wanting to leave the Magic.
Steve Nash I believe made a statement saying it would be hard for him to put on a Laker jersey, which is understandable because he played for Phoenix and has had some tough moments against the Lakers. Yet when he decided to join the Lakers, I didn’t hear anybody scrutinizing him for that.
There have been rumors that players like Nicholas Batum and Roy Hibbert may leave their respected teams and head elsewhere but once again I haven’t heard anyone say they have no loyalty.
Last year the Lakers traded Lamar Odom, some said they wronged him in some way by trading him. Odom even said he felt like they were unloyal to him. I personally never understood that, I can understand that you love your team and you want to stay but if you’re going to play in the NBA, you need to be prepared for change whether you like it or not. Just as a fan of the NBA you have to be prepared for players leaving or asking to be traded.
The reason I believe you don’t hear people scrutinize them or certain players is because most people either don’t care much for those players or teams or they feel like those players have good reasons for wanting to leave well guess what….so does Ray Allen and any other player who leaves their team to go to another team.
As I said and will continue to say, you can’t have it both ways and call someone unloyal because you don’t like their decision. This is a business, changes will be made, honestly if you can’t handle that you might not want to watch the NBA or get involved with any more sports.
As a sports writer and analyst, I admit story lines really drive the NBA. I enjoy it for the most part because it makes my job loveable until it gets out of hand like it did with LeBron James a couple years ago.
So once again I say, stop saying Ray Allen or any player or team has no loyalty because they leave their team or let a player go. The NBA is business. Players and teams do what they think is best for them, period.