Two years ago, when the first stone was cast into the discussion pond of NBA free agency 2010, the names LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh were the first ripples to stir the waters with King James being the obvious jackpot prize.
While those three names have been the most prevalently circulated since 2008, it was only recently that the notion of them all playing together gained traction as a legitimate possibility. Now with Wade and Bosh committed to Miami, all things are in place for James to join the party.
Wait a minute. Wade, Bosh and LeBron on the same team? That would be…
Feel free to finish the sentence because for all intents and purposes, there’s no one way to react to the potential of an NBA Cerberus monster such as the one this particular trio would form.
To even have two of those three on the same team immediately catapults a franchise into the realm of “contender” (assuming they have qualified role players), albeit mostly on paper to start. But to have all three donning the same uniform night in and night out is a reality that’s rudely seductive to day dream about, but you’ve got to wonder whether or not it’s really the best course of action for everyone involved.
We can’t allow the luster of this Super Trio fool us into thinking that James, Wade and Bosh have all of a sudden forfeited their egos, paychecks and essentially, their games, for the sake of chasing championships together, especially given LeBron’s meltdown against Boston this past postseason.
As illustrious as such a super team may be from the outset, there are always two sides to everything and anything less than a dynasty would cast a dark cloud over the careers of all three superstars forever.
NEXT: Egos and basketball
In the grandest sense, a player’s ego and his game are basically intertwined and triggered by the same nucleus. In LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, you have three alpha ballers, all used to life as top dog and team leader. At just 25, 28 and 26 years of age respectively, it’s tough to imagine that all three of them are all so desperate to win a title that they’d be willing to “do whatever it takes” as it pertains to making all of the right individual adjustments, internally and on the court, without a flinch.
What I find incredibly interesting is that since “LeBron Watch” really exploded following the end of the NBA Finals, the vast majority of the media has not continued questioning King James’ true motivation in choosing the city that he will resume his career in. Is it for a ring? His brand? Money? No one knows but him.
Like I said, the guy flopped on his face in the Eastern Conference Semifinals and didn’t even own up to the cataclysmic turn of events, leaving Cavs fans low and still hanging. What makes everyone think that his desire to make himself “the biggest brand in the world” promptly went out the window with Cleveland’s championship hopes last May?
Obviously, LeBron is a smart guy and he knows as well as anyone else that to win a title, he can’t do it all alone as has been the case pretty much his entire professional career. But at the same time, how much help does he even really want? The tricky thing about carving out a stellar NBA legacy is finding that perfect balance between individual glory and team supremacy.
All superstar players relish the opportunity to make all the big plays in crunch time or that’s how it should be at least. Who will command the spotlight shine last and the brightest amongst the Super Trio?
If anything, I’d say Dwyane Wade, at 28 years old and already having tasted the sweet taste of championship champagne, is the most willing to give up the rock to a guy like LBJ. Giving too much ground to Bosh on the team that he took to the Promised Land however, is probably an idea held in contention given the fact that he is without a doubt, the least touted star of the bunch.
It’s difficult for me to digest the fact that the majority of media coverage surrounding this grandiose concept of an NBA triumvirate has yet to really dissect all of the negative angles when it comes to addressing the issue of whether or not this will really work in the locker room and on the court.
There will barely be enough of the ball to go around between the three superstars so as you can imagine, keeping all of the role players happy could be a prescription that places the coaching staff on a daily Advil regimen as well.
NEXT: So will it work or what?
In order for South Beach to rejoice in solidifying their Super Trio now that Flash and Bosh have already stated their intent to the Heat, Michael Beasley and his approximate $5.0 million salary must be moved in order to free up sufficient cap space to sign three max contracts, whether it’s a deal involving a sign-and-trade deal with Toronto for Chris or simply shedding his contract. Here’s where money comes into play.
Let’s say that Miami does manage to gain LeBron’s commitment. The glaring question will remain – can they also find eight to ten servicable players willing to play for league minimum? We’re essentially talking to rest of the roster here.
And let’s not kid ourselves, one or more of the three studs are going to be asked to take less money, leaving at least one as highest paid.
Who is going to bite the bullet?
As unfortunate as it is, how much a superstar is paid, in the player’s eyes, defines (too much of) their worth so it will be worth watching to see how the heirarchy starts to fall into place beginning with contract negotiations, if LeBron does indeed join forces with Wade and Bosh in Miami. We all know Chris has been in search of a true max deal all along with the ideal scenario for him being a sign-and-trade out of Toronto, but again, how much of that is he willing to leave on the table?
Championships though, are not won with three players, regardless of who they may be. Quality role players are an absolute necessity in the never ending chase for NBA rings. LeBron, Wade and Bosh cannot play 48 minutes a night on the way to a title. As we’ve seen in recent years, a championship team’s second unit can have just as critical of an impact as the starting five, both good and bad.
Obviously, the unification of a Super Trio in Miami would be a sight and standard that has never before been seen in all of sports. But, seeing the remaining players all playing for minimum salaries will be just as intriguing of a reality.
Personally, this entire circus just seems like something that I’d liken to making a deal with the devil.
On the surface, the luster glimmering from the three superstars will indeed intoxicate the senses of all basketball fans world wide, but whether or not that same glow will be reflecting off of championship rings at season’s end perhaps requires the king of blessings that you’d much rather have from the Man upstairs rather than that guy bellowing below.
This notion of having a roster with three premium cut diamonds surrounded by lumps of coal in hopes of creating a dynasty is just something that I don’t buy. Minimum salary players have all the same emotions and desires as the rest of us. If the Heat falter or stumble at all, the onus will be placed more so on them because who would dare lay blame upon the Super Trio?
You know what you’re going to get with LeBron, D-Wade and Chris Bosh so whether the three of them together could win a title or not would have just as much to do with the rest of the squad. How much ridicule can the “supporting cast” endure? With such a tremendous discrepancy in paychecks between them and the three-headed beast, I’d say not enough to win multiple titles, that’s for sure.
NEXT: So will it work or what?
If you look at the 2008 Olympics during which the three superstars in question did play cohesively on their way to a Gold Medal, sure, we could come up with all the reasons in the world why it should work. However, the NBA is not a league built on certainty when it comes to a championship contender actually getting the job done, regardless of personnel.
In my personal opinion, the variables of checking egos and a roster built so much on minimum salary players are just too great of factors to make any concrete assessment. But if you put a gun to my head and forced me to gush out an answer, I’d have to say no, this will not work to the extent that everyone is making it out to be.
I base my final answer on the assertion that all three players are simply not at that ultimate desperate end yet where they’d be able to collectively sell out (in a good way) 100%, doing all the right things at the right times.
To be bluntly forthright as well, let’s keep it real, Chris Bosh is not exactly an NBA elite and he’s barely a superstar, if even that. We all call him that for a matter of convenience in discussions because for whatever reason, this trio seemingly has to be glorified before anything is even set in stone. I personally am not blown away with the guy’s game.
For us Laker fans, the prime example of a player who was truly willing to completely disregard his own individual glory and step into a true “do whatever is asked of me” championship mentality is none other than Ron Artest. No fan will ever forget that Game 7 against Boston during which all Artest could do was right.
Sure, Ron is not nearly at the level of a LeBron or D-Wade, but he has been one of the main men on his team throughout the majority of his career. Artest jumped at the chance to play for a title for only a mid-level salary without batting an eye lash and why?
Because he was at that desperate hungry end to win an NBA title before all was said and done.
NBA superstars are not only the biggest and baddest ballers in our world, but they’re also businessmen and they know full well that nothing is absolute nor is it guaranteed in life. Obviously, LeBron, Wade and Bosh are all surely starving for championships, especially in a league where Kobe is King with five titles to his name, but at the same time, every star is also chasing a certain measure of their own personal legacy.
Based of LeBron’s track record thus far and the lengths to which he is letting his inner diva turn this year’s free agency period into his own personal parade of narcissism, I don’t think he’s as willing to share the main stage lights as people think.
And last time I checked, Miami is D-Wade County.