NBA: Will the new anti-tampering rules prove to be effective?

LeBron James and Anthony Davis

As the previous slide shows, in recent years and the NBA has seen fit to levy steeper fines for individuals violating its anti-tampering rules not to mention that such necessity seems to have been cropping up more often. This is most certainly one of the reasons that Adam Silver saw fit to propose the changes that were approved on Friday.

But I think this is only the most straightforward reason. The shift toward player-empowerment that Joe Caldwell started all the way back in 1971 it alive and flourishing in today’s NBA. And while the league has been quick the throw fines at NBA executives and coaches for ignoring the rules, the lines are much more blurry when it comes to the players. LeBron James’ apparent pursuit of Anthony Davis has even been decried by some smaller market owners as displaying a double standard when it comes to enforcing anti-tampering rules between players.

Players under contract requesting trades have become commonplace over the last few years and it puts the teams in a difficult position. There’s no denying the kind of havoc a player like Anthony Davis can wreak within a locker room when he’s unhappy in his situation.

But at the same time, an agreement was struck between the team and a player. AND at the same time, why is it okay for a team to trade a player, essentially voiding the terms of the said agreement in the interests of the team? Shouldn’t a player be allowed to do the same in their own interests?

With very little thought, however, we can see that in comparing the relationship between players and coaches/executives with that of players amongst themselves there’s no way to come to a point of parity. If you think of it in terms of pop culture references, the differences become obvious.

The relationships between players remind me of Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf from Looney Toons. Sam and Ralph were just a couple of guys who’s interests were at odds with each other while they were on the clock. But before they clocked in and after they clocked out, they engaged in pleasant small talk.

Similarly with a lot of NBA players, while they are fiercely competitive on the court, even against their close friends, they can be seen catching up before and after games, even embracing in some cases. And many of those relationships go far beyond pre-game pleasantries.

The relationships between execs/coaches are more like Professor X and Magneto from X-Men. With the kinds of powers that the X-Men from each camp wield, it’s always extremely problematic when either Professor X or Magneto make attempts to recruit from the other’s group. The stakes are just so much higher and the abilities available to be gained or lost are easily enough to swing the momentum in favor of one side or the other.

The Pelicans’ initial refusal to trade Anthony Davis to the Lakers when he asked is a perfect example of this. I remember talking about it at the time and saying, “Of course the Pelican’s don’t want to send AD to play on the same team as LeBron James within their own conference.” I think that had James still been in the Eastern Conference, the Pelicans management may have been more willing to go along with Davis’ request.

But even had that been the situation, there was the concern that Davis’ request could have set a precedent that would have a ripple effect league-wide. It creates the very real possibility that player demands could get so out of hand that the pendulum swings so far that it puts teams at the mercy of the whims of the players. The top players especially.

Ideally, the relationship needs to be symbiotic. Because how many players would be able to manage all the aspects of being an NBA franchise AND maintain their competitiveness on the court? On the other hand, all of the organization and work on marketing, managing and putting butts in seats that the front offices do is for naught without the players going out there and doing what they do.