This has been the greatest off-season in NBA history. That’s because when it’s all said and done, it will be remembered as the shortest. You could count the number of days when there wasn’t anything NBA-related worth talking about on one hand. Free agency news, coaching hires, Team USA, endorsement deals, the draft, Summer Pro League, trade rumors, etc. There were plenty of obvious winners this summer. Joe Johnson, Wesley Matthews, Drew Gooden, and Travis Outlaw come first to mind. Nobody should be surprised those guys were winners but the extent to which they won has to come as a bit of a surprise. There were some other big winners this off-season that went under the radar. Some you probably didn’t think about. And it’s because of them that I present my first annual Unexpected Winners of the NBA Off-Season:
Jim Gray – Broadcaster/Independent Contractor For Hire
Has there ever been an announcer who has been involved in more memorable-yet-awkward moments in sports than Jim Gray? When Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield’s ear it was Gray who interviewed Iron Mike post-fight. When Pete Rose was finally allowed back on a Major League Baseball field, it was Gray who was there to ruin the evening by asking Charlie Hustle to come clean about whether or not he bet on baseball. That led to an even more awkward exchange with Gray and Chad Curtis during the 1999 World Series when Curtis snubbed Gray after hitting a game-winning home run.
Gray was also the reporter who helped fan the flames of the Shaq/Kobe feud by trying to service Kobe the way Ahmad Rashad serviced Michael Jordan in the 90s.
Just when we thought we’d seen the last of Gray as a relevant announcer he managed to become relevant again by being a major part of three different stories in three different major sports this summer.
First it was Gray who was hired to “interview” LeBron James during “The Decision”.
Gray popped up again just a couple of weeks ago in Canton, Ohio. This time he was being thanked by Floyd Little during Little’s induction speech for the work he’d done lobbying to get his childhood hero into the Hall of Fame (Gray grew up in Denver).
Most recently, there was Gray, while working for The Golf Channel, stirring it up with US Ryder Cup captain, Cory Pavin. Gray reported that Pavin had told him that he would be adding Tiger Woods to the US team. When Pavin denied it, Gray reportedly called him a liar and told Pavin he was “going down.”
Welcome back, Jim! I guess it’s better to be despised than irrelevant. Or even worse, forgotten.
Kevin O’Connor – General Manager, Utah Jazz
The best GMs in sports are usually the guys that even die-hard fans would have a hard time picking out of a police lineup. This was a summer filled with question marks for O’Connor and his small-market Jazz.
Three of the Jazz’s top six players were free agents this summer, including the team’s top scorer and rebounder, Carlos Boozer, their best three-point shooter, Kyle Korver, and undrafted rookie, Wesley Matthews.
O’Connor allowed all three guys to leave via free agency and replaced them with what could be better pieces and at a lower cost for next season.
First he used the 9th pick in the draft to select Butler’s Gordon Hayward to replace Korver — a pick he acquired from the Knicks back in 2004.
Next he acquired Al Jefferson from the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kosta Koufos and two future first-round picks. A small price to pay for someone who averaged 23 points and 11 rebounds per game just two seasons ago.
Two days later he reacquired Raja Bell by signing the free agent swingman before he was scheduled to have dinner with Kobe Bryant. And he might not be done making moves. He still has Andrei Kirilenko’s giant expiring $17.8 million contract that he can use to play with.
It’s about time O’Connor got recognized as one of the league’s best GMs. If you don’t believe me, just take a look at the 2nd round picks O’Connor has made since he began making personnel decisions for the Jazz.
Tom Izzo – Head Coach, Michigan State Spartans/Brian Shaw – Asst. Coach, Los Angeles Lakers
No disrespect to new Cavs head coach, Byron Scott, but you have to give credit to Michigan State’s Tom Izzo and Lakers assistant coach, Brian Shaw. Both men were interviewed and believed to be the next head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers and both backed out of the running.
Turns out these two probably saw the writing on the wall when LeBron wouldn’t take their respective phone calls.
In the past three weeks, Izzo has done enough recruiting to fill out Spartan rosters for the next two seasons and Shaw will probably have his choice at coaching either the Lakers or his hometown Golden St. Warriors next season.
Meanwhile, Scott is left picking up the pieces in Cleveland with just Ramon Sessions, Ryan Hollins, and a couple of rookies to replace James with.
Stephen A. Smith – Journalist and Talk-Show Host, Philadelphia Sports Daily and Fox Sports Radio
If you thought Jim Gray saved his career this summer then what could you say about Stephen A. Smith? Up until this summer, Smith was considered a blowhard and a clown who just pretended he knew what he was talking about by using eye-rolls and yelling to make himself sound credible.
But it was Smith who tweeted and told Dan Patrick on June 28 that LeBron and Chris Bosh were both headed to Miami to team up with Dwyane Wade.
Smith has since made the rounds on various talk show to gloat and say “I told you so.” He’s even had the chance to guest co-host on The View.
Smith’s scoop has definitely bought him some shine and credibility. That is, until the next time he says something ridiculous or reports something erroneously.
Shaquille O’Neal, Boston Celtics/Tracy McGrady, Detroit Pistons
I know what you’re thinking. How could two guys who’ve taken $20 million pay cuts be considered winners this off-season? That’s easy. It’s because they found homes for next season. I’m sure they both would have preferred to get larger contracts but they’ve both made enough money that they’re great-great-great-great-great grandchildren might not have to ever get jobs.
The truth is that they should both be considered winners because neither Shaq nor T-Mac had to suffer the embarrassment of having to retire due to league-wide rejection.
O’Neal got a two-year deal from the Celtics that will give him the chance to compete for a fifth championship and allow him to ride off into the sunset on his own terms while McGrady, who is younger than Kobe Bryant, will get an opportunity to prove that he can stay healthy and still be an effective player.
Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder
Durant signed a five-year, $85 million extension with the Thunder this summer. But that’s not why he’s on this list. At least not the only reason. Durant made this list for a number of reasons.
For starters, he was the anti-LeBron. He didn’t need a one-hour special to announce his decision to sign his extension. He used Twitter to announce it and then thanked God, and his family for the support they gave him to put him in the position to sign the extension and succeed in life.
Second, he became the face of USA Basketball as it prepares for the World Basketball Championships in Istanbul later this month.
Third, Durant has been brought into the discussion of who the three best players in the NBA are. Two well-respected analysts, TNT’s Kenny Smith and Steve Kerr, both stated that Durant is neck-and-neck with Dwyane Wade for the title of the league’s third-best player behind Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.
At 21 years old, the future couldn’t be brighter for Durant and his brand—one that now brings to mind keywords like teamwork, leadership, humility, faith, and pride.
Brian Cook, Los Angeles Clippers/Shaun Livingston, Charlotte Bobcats
These two guys made the list together because they both managed to prolong careers that were once considered dead.
But there’s a big difference between them.
Livingston deserves recognition for battling back from a career-threatening knee injury to get himself a two-year, $7 million deal with the Bobcats. I don’t even want to link to the play in which Livingston injured himself for fear that I might see it again.
Livingston finished last season with the Wizards and became expendable when they won the Draft Lottery and the chance to select John Wall with the first overall pick. But his stint with the Wizards, including three games in which he scored 18 points and two others in which he scored 21 and 25 points, was enough to convince Michael Jordan and the Bobcats that he was worth giving a shot to.
Cook was released by the Houston Rockets at the trade deadline last season. For some reason the Clippers not only offered him a contract for more than the minimum but they gave him a two-year, $2.3 million deal—despite averaging 1.4 points per game last season and 2.5 ppg the season before.
The good news is that Cook has joined a long list of one-time Lakers who became Clippers long after it was apparent their best days were behind them—a list that includes Smush Parker, Sean Rooks, Norm Nixon, Jamaal Wilkes, David Rivers, Mike Smrek, Antonio Harvey, Mario Bennett, Derek Strong, and Glen Rice.
Jordan Bratman – Music Executive
I know what you’re thinking. What the hell is Christina Aguilera’s husband doing on an NBA-related list? It’s simple.
The Lakers were down 3-2 heading back to Los Angeles for Game 6 of their series with the Celtics. The Boston crowd was pumped for Game 5 thanks to an incredible rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner, performed by The Boston Pops.
The Lakers needed someone who could give the Staples Center the same type of juice. So they brought in Aguilera. The result was a Game 6 victory and a forced Game 7. So the Lakers brought her back for Game 7 and the result was another victory and title number 16—one short of the Celtics’ 17.
So why does Bratman make the list?
Bratman came up on courtside seats to the NBA Finals by virtue of being married to the woman who sang the anthem and, in all likelihood, will probably find himself sitting in the front row of many more games to come. Since Aguilera’s is a spotless 2-0 in the NBA Finals she’ll probably be invited back until they lose she performs at. If you don’t believe me just ask Jeffrey Osborne. The “On The Wings of Love” guy has been singing the anthem at important Lakers playoff games for close to 30 years now.
How could you leave Twitter off the list of the summer’s biggest winners? The moment the clock hit midnight on July 1, Twitter became the go-to spot for basketball lovers and writers to get the latest on free agency news, player movement, and coaching changes. As mentioned above, Twitter was used by Stephen A. Smith before July 1 to break free agency news and was also the forum with which Kevin Durant chose to announce he had reached an agreement with the Thunder on a contract extension.
Twitter served a similar purpose in 2009 except that the Free Agent Class of ’09 wasn’t nearly as glamorous. Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva, and Marcin Gortat aren’t exactly LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade. Even though 90 percent of what we read on Twitter turned out to be nothing more than rumor and innuendo, it was still the best forum to get the 10 percent that turned out to be true.
The truth is that Twitter isn’t going anywhere. There might be a better site that one day replaces it but the concept of a networking site that provides people the opportunity to get instant information from writers is here to stay. Consider that every sportswriter wants to be the one to break a story and Twitter provides a day-and-time stamp with which to prove it.
Jews
Pardon me for being proud of the unexpected attention that my people have received this off-season but it’s hard to ignore it. After winning his second championship ring in June, Jordan Farmar earned himself a three-year, $12 million contract. The Nets are anticipating a move to Brooklyn in two years—home to approximately 500,000 Jews (out of about $5 million in the entire United States). Smart move by Farmar.
That came on the heels of Irene Pollin, the widow of late Wizards’ owner and great friend to Israel, Abe Pollin, winning the draft lottery and gave the team’s Jewish GM, Ernie Grunfeld, to chance to draft John Wall (not Jewish). Pollin has since sold the team to minority partner, Ted Leonsis (also not Jewish).
But all of that paled in comparison to Amar’e Stoudemire proclaiming that he had Jewish ancestry, even going so far as to travel to Israel to explore his roots. Even though it turned out that Stoudemire doesn’t have any Jewish roots he did bring attention to the beauty of a country that is nothing like how it’s portrayed in the news.
And how can I forget LeBron James’ “Séance At Sea” with Rabbi Yishayahu Yosef Pinto—”The Rabbi to the Business Stars”? According to TMZ, LeBron hired the non-English speaking Rabbi Pinto for “spiritual guidance”. Sounds to me like a bunch of BS but still more Kosher basketball news.
Honorable Mention: The Basketball Jones on TheScore.com
If you’re not checking out their site, following @JESkeets and @TasMelas on Twitter, or subscribing to their podcast on iTunes, then you’re losing.
The Jones boys deserve to be recognized for the videos they’ve put out this summer.
First they gave us this classic where Tas, as Hedo Turkoglu, finds out he’s been traded to the Phoenix Suns. That was followed by their Multiple Sources vid where they openly mocked writers who like to quote anonymous sources.
Then came their two-part masterpiece in which they dramatized scenes from Arash Markazi’s piece on LeBron’s party night in Vegas that ESPN pulled off their site (Part I and Part II).
If you haven’t seen any of the videos I suggest checking them out, especially the Turkoglu one.
Andrew Ungvari is a co-lead blogger for SirCharlesInCharge.com. Follow him on twitter.