Privately, it seems like the NBA has been upset with the Golden State Warriors after they signed Kevin Durant. Grabbing a former league MVP to add to an already dominant team was something of a shock thanks to the jump in the salary cap a couple of years ago.
Now, the Warriors are NBA champions once again and it seems as though Durant will be with Golden State for a least a few more years. The team also recently added former star big man DeMarcus Cousins, who was having a good season with the New Orleans Pelicans last year until he ruptured his Achilles tendon.
Cousins isn’t likely to stick around after 2019, but at least on paper it seems as though the Warriors are the destination for big time players, all while their salary demands taking a backseat.
Now, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver says that the Warriors and their front office practices are in line with the league’s goals. Specifically, Silver said he thought it was okay for Golden State to try and increase their dominance after a season in which they took home the Larry O’Brien trophy quite easily.
Via Sports Illustrated:“We want teams to compete like crazy,” Silver said. “I think the Warriors—within the framework of this deal—should be doing everything they can to increase their dominance. That’s what you want to see in a league. You want teams to compete in every way they can within the rules.
“I don’t necessarily think it’s per se bad that the Warriors are so dominant. As I’ve said before, we’re not trying to create some sort of forced parity. What we really focus on is parity of opportunity.”
The most interesting part of that quote was at the end of the first paragraph. Silver said he wants everyone to play within the rules. As the rules stand right now, Golden State is A-OK. But as we’ve seen with special circumstances in the past, it’s entirely possible the rules could change thanks to dire need within the league.
I personally think that’s a real possibility for the NBA moving forward. It’s no secret that the league would rather that Durant was not teamed up with the superstars on the Warriors, and guys taking a pay cut -- or at least less than their expected value with regard to max salaries -- is a real problem. LeBron James obviously got paid, but if this Warriors team is going to continue to have multiple players take the Dirk Nowitzki route and re-sign for less than market value in their primes, that’s a real problem for the competitive balance in the NBA.
Again, that’s my own personal projection with what I see happening within the league. The reality is there aren’t enough star players to fill two spots on each of the 30 NBA teams. The fact that some can choose to glom together (while socially just) isn’t in the best business interests of the NBA.
Then again, Cousins will be gone after next season and Durant could be on the Knicks after too long. Maybe this isn’t an issue, but no doubt Silver has been weighing his options in terms of guarding against superteams like Golden State in the future.
The number one way to combat that, in all honesty, is to fight harder for cap smoothing if the opportunity comes available next time out.