We saw old men who were blessed enough to grow old — like George Gervin, a little rounder in the waist than his days as the “Ice Man” but still striking the pose of his famous finger roll. And we saw how unfair life can be when Kobe Bryant remained frozen in a black-and-white in-memoriam photo, unable to soak in the love next to the other legends.
The weekend was dripping with sentimentality, and it reignited our love for this game. And then we remembered what we’re in for, especially if we don’t tune out the noise: the cynical conclusion to this season, which undoubtedly will remind us, oh yeah, we loathe this part of this game.
It begins when James Harden, your superteam’s favorite rental, makes his debut with the Philadelphia 76ers following the break. This will be his second new team in 13 months because Harden couldn’t find his fit in Brooklyn alongside future Hall of Famers Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Granted, Durant hasn’t played since Jan. 15 because of a left knee injury, and Irving remains a part-time player because of his unvaccinated status. Harden must have looked around, noticed that Kessler Edwards is doing a poor imitation of KD and that home starting point guard Patty Mills is no Irving, and decided he needed to make a championship-chasing cameo elsewhere.
In this era of player movement and shorter contracts — buy that free agent’s jersey at your peril — Harden embodies the superstar who lives out of his suitcase. His game marvels but his eye wanders, and he’s piling up more trade requests than goodwill; fans at the All-Star Game in Cleveland rained down boos on Harden during player introductions.
Besides waiting for Harden to want out in Philadelphia, we can look forward to three more months of leaks out of Los Angeles.
Lakers General Manager Rob Pelinka thought it was safe to tell reporters about the “alignment” between himself and his two stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, following the team’s inaction at the trade deadline. But a follow-up report cited unnamed sources who described Pelinka’s claim as “totally false.” At this point, Pelinka could announce the sky is blue, then James and Davis — or their representatives — will leak that it’s actually green.
What makes the passive-aggressive back-and-forth so rich is that this is the roster James wanted. He pushed for Russell Westbrook, even though James’s basketball intelligence had to have warned him it wouldn’t work. You can’t hide a turnover-prone guard who needs the ball in his hands or a stubborn non-shooter who won’t stop shooting. Yet this is the player the Lakers mortgaged their short-term future to add.
James, back in Cleveland, must have been feeling nostalgic for his former team — or he was just trying to scare Lakers brass — when he said the door is not closed on a return to the Cavaliers. He didn’t exactly proclaim he’ll be back when his contract runs out, but he left enough breadcrumbs for fans in Ohio to snack on until 2023 — and enough fodder to color an underwhelming season in L.A.
While the Lakers play for a coveted play-in spot — which, along with the Elam ending in the All-Star Game, is the other marvelous idea the NBA has recently adopted — other franchises won’t even reach that valley. Tankers gonna tank, so get ready for teams to start looking like early versions of summer league rosters.
The Oklahoma City Thunder is no doubt preparing to hear LeBron say something nice about its next draft pick — and to praise GM Sam Presti in a subtle dig at Pelinka — so how long do you expect standout guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to keep playing after he returns from an ankle injury? And though the top two picks in last year’s draft are perfectly healthy, I would be shocked if Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Houston’s Jalen Green remain on the active list as their teams try to reach 20 wins.
But that’s me being too cynical and forgetting the lessons from All-Star Weekend — such as imagining the joy that would be had if today’s version of Magic and Michael (Stephen Curry and James) get a one-on-one showdown in the playoffs. Or riding the Memphis Grizzlies bandwagon, driven by Ja Morant, through the postseason. Or watching Giannis Antetokounmpo continue to cement his legacy as one of the all-time greats if he leads the Milwaukee Bucks back to the Finals.
If last weekend in Cleveland taught us anything, delighting us while seeing our favorite old-timers and witnessing Curry lift the game to new heights, it’s that the league still lives rent-free in our hearts. You just have to keep your eyes off the unsavory parts and stay focused on the pure fun.