You know that three-headed dog in Harry Potter? Its name- Fluffy. The fearsome creature guards the sorcerer’s stone and is a very unique one.
Well, Fluffy is beginning to become more common in the NBA. One three-headed monster sprung up in Boston a few years back. Then another was constructed this summer in Miami. Garnett/Pierce/Allen, James/Wade/Bosh. And those were just the beginning.
These big dogs are taking shape in big markets across the league. Not all are three-headed monsters. There’s Rose and Boozer in Chicago and the newest two-headed beast in the Big Apple, Carmelo joined with Amare.
There’s good and bad in this. The idea of the superstar duos and trios is certainly intriguing. They can be fun to watch and to see which is the strongest, like a bunch gladiators thrown into the ring where only one comes out alive.
But the bad side is that the NBA is starting to resemble the ugly parts of another pro sports league, MLB. Yes, the NBA still has a cap, so it’s impossible for it to reach quite the economic disparity of baseball. However, the model for winning in the NBA has become tear apart the ship, clear cap space and bring in not just one big gun but a whole arsenal.
It’s not teams that have control. It’s players that are dictating the stakes. The Nuggets could have kept Carmelo Anthony, not traded him as he wanted but at the end of the day, he’s most likely a goner come summer. Denver still loses him and gets nothing in return. We see how well that worked out for the now record-setting losers in Cleveland.
LeBron James and Anthony were taken in the same draft. Both lifted their franchises back to respectability and deep into the Playoffs. The Cavs set franchise records and reached an NBA Finals. The Nuggets reached the Western Conference Finals.
Now their cupboards are looking as stocked as a poor college kid’s.
For Knicks fans, it’s a time to be cautiously optimistic. They've taken the first step- constructing a duo that can begin to compete with their counterparts.
For NBA fans, it’s a time to sit back and watch in uncertainty. If you’re one in a small market, you might want to start getting worried. There are some superstars like Tim Duncan and Kevin Durant who have stayed loyal to a little city. But that’s not becoming the trend. Will Chris Paul or Dwight Howard bolt for brighter lights and to join other stars?
It has been happening in MLB’s free reign system for years. Getting attached to a player has become something to which small market fans have become desensitized.
NBA fans might want to do the same. It’ll save sadness, heartbreak and a lot of expensive merchandise from going up in flames. Because, just ask those adventurous kids from the famous novel, you won’t reach the ultimate prize if you can’t get by the three-headed dog.
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