Expert Article Final

Superteams in the NBA

How all the power is shifting to star players

By Sam Simon

The History of Superteams

The origination of the “superteam” in the NBA can easily be argued. While many look at the superteam as a new development, there have been a plethora of teams with multiple All-Stars over the history of the NBA. In the 1950s and early 60s, Bill Russell and the Celtics won 11 titles, a completely unmatched number. In the 1970s, the “bad boy” Pistons dominated with a team consisting of five Hall of Famers (Holmes). In the early 80s, the Lakers, with Kareem Abdul-Jabar, Magic Johnson, and James Worthy, battled the Celtics who had Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish. In the late 80s and early 90s it was Michael Jordan, along with Hall of Famers Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Steve Kerr, who led the Bulls to six championships. This trend continues as each decade of NBA history has dominant teams. However, now, the perception of these superteams has changed – and the question is why?

Free Agency’s Impact

NBA free agency began in 1988 (Whitehead). Free agency means that once his contract is up, an NBA player can choose which team to sign with. Before 1988, NBA players had no option to leave the team they were drafted by, unless they were traded by management. These players had no control over where they were playing. For the teams, this meant being successful in the NBA draft was key to developing a competitive and potential championship team. In 2008, the original “Big Three” was assembled in Boston. Perennial All-Stars Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen decided to leave their respective teams in free agency and join the Celtics to play with fellow All-Star Paul Pierce. There had been many dominant teams before the 2008 Celtics, however, they were the first team to bring in multiple stars through free agency, and ultimately win the NBA Finals that year. All the great teams before them were assembled through effective drafting and occasionally, timely trades. The fact that the original “Big Three” was successful changed the NBA landscape and initially, gave a big advantage to the large markets where NBA players wanted to play. It also gave substantial power to the players, who now had the ability to compare potential suitors and choose the team that not only paid the most, but gave them the best chance to win.

The Heat

One of the most infamous decisions in sports history occurred in 2011, when LeBron James, widely considered the best player in the NBA, left his hometown team in Cleveland to join forces with former MVP Dwyane Wade and All-Star Chris Bosh in Miami. This decision was met with a ton of criticism, not just because of the way LeBron made it, but because many saw it as a threat to the parity and competitiveness of the NBA. It almost seemed like a video game, in which you could put whoever you wanted on a team. The essential part of this decision, however, is that it was made in order to win. James, Bosh, and Wade all took pay cuts so the Miami Heat could stay under the salary cap (maximum amount a team can spend on players’ contracts). Because of the vast amount of money the players made from endorsements, and the opportunity in a market like that of Miami, taking a few million dollars less of salary had little impact on these players. Despite the outrage against the decision, the Heat and their improved “Big Three” went on to make the finals in four straight years and to win the finals twice.

Rising Salary Cap and Contract Flexibility

After the era of the “Big Three” in Miami, LeBron James returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers, signing a two-year contract with a “player option” after one year. This means that after his first year back in Cleveland, James could either opt in and keep the terms of the second year or opt out and become a free agent. This was interesting to many, as it seemed James was not fully committed to the Cavaliers. Additionally, it was quite a risk, given the possibility of getting injured and not being able to receive as large of a contract afterwards. However, in reality, James was taking advantage of two main points in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (between the NBA and the Players Union). First, he was allowing himself the flexibility of evaluating his team’s performance and deciding if he had a better chance of winning somewhere else. And second, he was taking advantage of the historically rising salary cap, from $70 million in 2015, to a record of $94 million in 2016 (Golliver). NBA contracts are affected by certain criteria and milestones. For example, a player with 10 years of experience can make substantially more than a rookie. Similarly, an MVP player can make more than someone who has never made an All-Star team. This is calculated by a maximum percentage of the cap that a player can receive. For example, James, who has over 10 years of experience, could have signed a maximum five-year contract at 35% of the $70 million cap in 2015. Instead, he could opt out of his contract after a year and sign at 35% of the much higher $94 million cap (Golliver). This accounts for a salary difference of $8.5 million per year!

Conclusion and Looking Forward

Taking advantage of the changing salary cap and criteria began with James, and continued with another MVP, Kevin Durant, who left smaller market Oklahoma City to join a team in Golden State, which had just blown a huge lead in the Finals to James’ Cavaliers. He signed a two-year deal with a player option as well in a move that was criticized heavily. People viewed it as taking the easy way out and decreasing competition, which isn’t necessarily incorrect. However, the main thing the changing CBA and thought process of stars in free agency does is create a large amount of turnover in the league. It favors star players who sign short term deals and forces franchises to find pieces to fit around them. Because of this, teams are constantly trying to find players on inexpensive, short term deals with whom they can surround these stars. If a team cannot get a star player to sign, they will likely trade away their best players who are due large contracts in order to cut payroll, accumulate draft picks, and plan for the future. Not only does this mean that players are constantly changing teams, but there is so little parity in the NBA because the teams that know they can’t compete will simply tank in order to get the highest draft pick. The NBA has always loved the marketability of their biggest stars, but now, due to the common development of the superteam, there are a very limited number of teams who can actually compete for a championship. All the power is in the hands of the stars, and the NBA will need to amend the CBA in order to spread parity throughout the players and the teams.

Works Cited

Golliver, Ben. “NBA Announces Record Salary Cap for 2016-17.” SI.com, 2 July 2016, www.si.com/nba/2016/07/02/nba-salary-cap-record-numbers-2016-adam-silver. 

Holmes, Dan. “Where Are the Bad Boys Now?” Detroit Athletic Co. Blog, 30 Dec. 2014, www.detroitathletic.com/blog/2014/12/30/bad-boys-now/. 

Whitehead, Todd. “How Free Agency Changed NBA Team Building.” FanSided, FanSided, 7 Sept. 2016, fansided.com/2016/09/07/free-agency-changed-nba-team-building/.