Why some NBA-D1-HS Basketball players chase titles!

There was a time in basketball that being LOYAL and LOYALTY were important LIFE LESSONS learned from NBA, college and high school Basketball players.

There was no NBA free agency, some trades and most players stayed with the team that selected and signed them for their entire careers.

There also was a time when there were no basketball scholarships and not 700 transfers each year in D-1 college basketball.

At the high school players could only transfer to another school without having to sit out a year from the date of transfer if the player and their parents changed domicile and moved to the town the high school was located in that they were transferring to.

There was loyalty among NBA basketball players back then. Teams like the Boston Celtics had the same players year after year and the only roster changes where possible trades, the retiring of players, the cutting of players and the addition of players added to the roster coming out of college.

College players did not transfer much and there was hardly any transferring of high school players.

The biggest reason there was little movement was because of rules that enforced the importance of the words LOYAL and LOYALTY.

Let’s look at Webster’s Dictionary definition of the word LOYAL: 1. Faithful to one’s country, friends, ideals, etc. 2.
showing such faithfulness–loy’ally adv–loyalty, pl-ties, n.
Webster’s Therausus definition: a. true, dependable, firm see faithfulness.

Therausus definition for loyalty: n. allegiance, faithfulness, fidelity, trustworthiness, constancy, integrity, attachment, sincerity, adherence, bond, tie, honor, reliability, good faith, conscientiousness, dependability, commitment, support, zeal, ardor, earnestness, resolution, obedience, duty, honesty, truthfulness; see also DEVOTION.–Ant. INDIFFERENCE, disloyalty, faithlessness.

With those definitions how come the words loyal and loyalty ever aren’t used much in today’s game of basketball at the 3 levels mentioned the NBA, D-1 College and High school.

Some people will say sorry, but being loyal or having loyalty is not important in the basketball worlds of today. Times have changed and society has changed. Time hasn’t changed a second is still a second, a minute is still a minute, 60 seconds is a minute, 60 minutes is still and hour and 24 hours is still a day. Time hasn’t changed, it is the people, their ideas, values and thinking that has changed our basketball world so much. Societies values certainly have changed not time.

Today, for the most part it is just the opposite of the meanings of those words. What is in it for me financially and for basketball success at the NBA level and for basketball success to be become a NBA player from the D-1 college level and for many high schoolers for a free college education and chance to play college basketball and possibly become an NBA player.

Just as watching NBA and D-1 basketball on TV especially the abuse and overuse of the 3 (Costing Boston and Houston their conference titles) and playing the athletic game and not the fundamental game has influenced many of today’s high school players, coaches, parents and fans that is the way the game should be played that it has influenced many players, coaches, parents and fans that today’s high school game should try to imitate the NBA and D-1 athletic game and we wonder why the high school game overall here in Maine is so fundamentally poor when players with little athletic ability try to play the game using what little athletic skill that they have to try to imitate what they see on TV.

So when NBA stars become free agents after playing on losing teams that drafted and signed them jump to teams that are the elite teams in the league just to chase championships and make more money, easy to understand why some talented college players transfer up the D-1 351 team chain to try to better themselves to get drafted by NBA teams and to make more money. Then when talented high school players playing for weak high school teams in their home towns transfer to towns or city or private schools that have strong basketball programs (even if they and their [parents/guardians sign a mpa transfer waiver that they are not transferring for “athletic purposes” (basketball), but is for athletic basketball purposes so that they can play on a stronger high school team with the chance to win a state championship and to possibly get a college basketball scholarship.

Regardless of the level of NBA, College or high school basketball players some who are the better players at their individual level are motivated by the same reasons, individual success and financial gain.

What kind of examples of being loyal or having loyalty are the so called stars of the NBA who chase championships and more money set or have for the college and high school players of today.

It is all about me when they chase championships to make more money then they will ever need. There is no I in team but there is certainly a ME in tEaM.

That is why IT IS VERY HARD TO RESPECT IN ANYWAY and hard to cheer or root for any NBA team that has a player who joined by free agency their already strong team to chase a championship that they have won or never won playing on the original team that drafted or signed them.

These players are certainly loyal and have loyalty TO THEMSELVES, WHEN THEY SHOULD BE THANKFUL TO HAVE THE GOD GIVEN SKILLS TO JUST BE ABLE TO PLAY IN THE NBA.

The worse thing the NBA (Pro sports) ever did was to negotiate the free agency that they didn’t have when the game was about TEAM and WE and not just ME and I.

Well now that the 2 teams have been determined who is going to play for the NBA championship which team am I going to root for?

Each has a player (Cleveland LeBron James and Golden State Kevin Durant) who chased a NBA title by going to the strongest team in their conference with the best players to try to win an NBA championship for the first time which they both where successful in doing.

So this to me which is the lesser of two negatives of not having any loyalty to the team that originally drafted them.

Using that as my determining faction at least LeBron James went from a weak team Cleveland to a fairly strong Miami team to achieve his goal. At least after winning two NBA titles in Miami LeBron returned to Cleveland where he lead them to an NBA Championship and to four consecutive NBA championship series.

Durant on the other hand went to a team, Golden State that had previously won an NBA championship and who had two of the best shooters in the entire NBA league.

So, with that I will be rooting for the Cleveland Cavaliers and LeBron James who certainly does not have the type of support that Durant has with the Warriors. James certainly has a much tougher job then Durant does as far as having to do more himself in order to win a 2nd title for Cleveland compared to Durant with all the help he has.

Besides not having the San Antonio Spurs or Boston Celtics in the championship series as they are the only teams I root for in the NBA in the regular season and not really wanting either the Warriors or Cavaliers to be in the finals again for the 4th consecutive year and Cavaliers being such a big underdog to win their 2nd NBA championship (12 point underdog for game 1) I’ll add rooting for the underdog as another reason to cheer and root for the Cavaliers.

Just my opinions based on what I have seen with basketball at the NBA, College and high school levels since 1943.

At least the basket is 18 inches in diameter, the ball is still 9 inches in diameter, the basket rim is still 10 feet from the floor and the foul line is 15 feet from the backboard. Those things have not changed and are still about the only things that have not changed same regardless of when basketball was being played.

GO CAVALIERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!