It’s one of the oldest clichés in sport: there is no “me” in the team.
But in reality, it’s localon.
It should always be about the team, not just an individual player – no matter how good he is.
Enter the here and now.
If you think analytical data is adrift in sports, this is even worse for a player’s career.
You see this now more than ever. It’s all about not wasting a particular player’s career. Somehow, the team must do anything and everything to ensure that a certain player wins in his career. Otherwise, that player must move to a better situation.
Bullshit.
Often, the journey and the struggle make the reward even sweeter. The Chicago Bulls did not waste Michael Jordan’s first seven years. There were only better teams and players in its path.
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This notion is not accepted today, however.
The last nonsense came from the Golden State. Somehow, management had to assure Steph Curry that the Warriors will do everything possible to ensure that he wins the rest of his already stellar career.
General manager Bob Myers said the Warriors feel a responsibility to maximize Curry’s title window.
Not the of the organization window but Curry’s.
“We felt that responsibility until that guy retired, or not in our team, ”Myers told the media. “You have to honor that.
“You have to do what you can, but that doesn’t mean that these opportunities are available every day and are easy to find. You are always looking, but this is your job. “
What doesn’t make sense is that the mission of trying to win is to help Curry win. The team had no longer assembled Curry by adding Kevin Durant to a team that had already won a title. In addition, Curry has won three NBA championships.
However, somehow, the Warriors owe Curry something more at this point in their career.
The mission must be for an organization to try to win all the time. And when you highlight Curry, does that mean that the careers of Klay Thompson and Draymond Green don’t matter that much? And if Curry weren’t on the team, wouldn’t the Warriors try so hard to win for these guys?
None of this makes sense.
And guess what. Everyone cannot win.
So, if a team doesn’t win, does it really mean that the franchise has wasted a player’s career?
But that’s where we are today. It’s all about serving a single star player. That’s why there are two defenders in the NFL who both believe from them Legacies are more important than anyone else’s.
First, Deshaun Watson decided that Texans do not know what they are doing, despite reaching the playoffs four of the previous six seasons.
Somehow, because he did not participate in the interview process to hire the new general manager of the team, he no longer wants to play in Houston and asked to be negotiated.
Remember that Watson is the same guy who signed a huge contract with this organization after switched his # 1 target at DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona.
It would have been time to complain and demand an exchange. Instead, he agreed with the team’s decision and took the money anyway.
The same goes for Russell Wilson with the Seattle Seahawks.
Somehow, after going to the Super Bowl twice and winning once, Wilson doesn’t believe Seattle is working to secure his legacy. He has spoken out publicly against the team.
Wilson never admitted that his legacy would be even greater if he had not played that goal-line interception to lose the Super Bowl to the New England Patriots.
And although Wilson did not officially ask for an exchange, he hinted that he would not mind moving to another team that he considers to be a better situation for him.
And let’s not forget James Harden’s departure from the Rockets. For sure, Houston did everything possible to put other stars around him. They brought in Dwight Howard, Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook. And although the team did run some serious races, in the end they failed to make it to the NBA finals.
They hardly wasted Harden’s precious years. Furthermore, they could have made it to a championship if Harden himself did not melt into big spots under the bright lights of the postseason.
Sports teams should simply try to win all the time – and especially for the fan base, not just for a player obsessed with his place in history.
“What is your responsibility?” Myers said about Curry. “It’s to help you win a championship, to put the best players around you as you can.”
It must be about the Warriors, not just Curry. Nowadays, teams have the wrong focus.