Another NBA season is upon us. Looks like another player wants out of his situation and the city he plays for. The latest guy that wants out is Jimmy Butler. Last season the Chicago Bulls traded him to the Timberwolves. Now with one year left on his deal and only having played one season in Minnesota, he wants out. He reunited with his former coach from the Bulls, Tom Thibodeau. Plus a few X teammates he played with in Chicago. Some people would call the Timberwolves, Chicago Alumi. Whatever you want to call them, they did make the playoffs last season. First time in a very long time.The city and the Timberwolves were hoping to build from that and go further into the playoffs. Now another superstar wants to take his ball and go somewhere else.

This is why the NBA is horrible. If you are building  something and a big piece of your puzzle leaves. You wine and dine them. You teach them, you pay them big bucks, and not even the length of the contract goes by before they want out. They want to play with their buddies. They want to form their own Avengers club. Jimmy Butler gave his list of demands for which team he wants to play for. Of course he wants to play with his buddy and of course the money has to be there. Have we seen this song and dance before? Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. These guys plotted and plotted some more to form the first superpower, the Miami Heat. Lebron James eventually went back to Cleveland and helped his old city win a championship. Then he realized he could not beat the Warriors anymore, so he left Cleveland again, and now he’s off to the Lakers. Hollywood gives the King another ransom to put in his pool of riches. Plus a slew of younger guys looking to take it to next level. Plus a cap that will probably bring in a few of Lebron’s buddies before the roster is ready to take down the Warriors. Look at the Warriors, who built something special. Then they added Kevin Durant a big star. Now the Warriors are an even bigger superpower. While Oklahoma, Durant’s former team, is still treading water after they almost took down the Warriors in the playoffs when Durant was still playing for the thunder.

The NBA these days have like two super powers. Then the league has a small group of second tier teams that are good. Then the rest of the league is watered down. Could you ever see the Sacramento Kings emerging in the playoffs like the days when Chris Webber had that team close to the NBA finals. Teams like the Kings might come along once every 50 years if they get lucky on draft and are able to keep a team together. Small cities with small markets will not succeed in present time days with all the players leaving teams to join their buddy or seek a championship while riding the coat tails of others.

How do you improve the NBA while letting the player movement continue? What can you do to give every team in the league a fair shot? I would turn the league into a fantasy league. First fire all the NBA coaches. What do you need from them anyways? Lebron James goes through coaches like changing his underwear. Each team signs a captain which is a player. Like on a playground or in a draft room, they picked their teams. Each team takes a turn of the pool of current players and throw in the draft as well. The season remains the same including the playoffs. Then you do it all over again the following year and put all the players back in the pool and pick them again. The team that wins the championship, they pick last the next season. Since none of the players these days stick in one town now, they would not have to worry. Every year may be a different scene. If the Captain of the team is not working out, he can go back in the pool and the team can try to sign another captain that can do a better job at picking or has a better group of friends in the hoop world. Maybe you can add keepers if the newest NBA takes off. If that is the case each team would have a threesome of buddies. Then those three buddies picks the rest of their rosters. Then you can have a Shiva bowl trophy like the show, The League, had.

In reality NBA teams have been working if they are running a fantasy team. Look at how many teams are trying to clear their books. They want no one their current rosters signed. Teams like the Knicks, Clippers and the Nets are racing to clear salary to sign the next big wave of free agents. They take on guys with one year deals. Then pounce on the free agents and try to land three big names. Everyone that has played any kind of fantasy knows they have guys in their league who have given up on their season. Then they start selling off their assets for draft picks. Jimmy Butler – teams he wants to go to is the Clippers or the Knicks. If Minnesota trades Butler to one of these places, you will see suddenly others will join Butler on another up and coming Avengers” team. Most think it will be “Red rover red rover let Kyrie Irving come over.” Then the two would need a Thor in the middle and life will be good for one of those now crappy teams. Basketball in that whatever city will have some life restored along with some hope. However a few basketball teams and their city will see bad days. Once an intriguing roster gutted by someone abandoning ship as they Red Rover out of town to play with their pals. The NBA will have a few superpowers. Maybe a different superpower. Then some pretty good second tier teams. Then the rest of the league will still be hot garbage. The NBA of the present and future. A league that should be taken out to the dumps.