No Clever Moniker wrote:
20+ years of listening to WSCR and its evolution to ownership stooges, and Chicago now has a sizable population of sports fans who can't see team ownership doing any wrong, ever.
I wouldn't expect you to know this beforehand, but I actually am very critical of management. I dislike their personnel strategy insofar as that "strategy" is keep acquiring athletically limited shooters to surround Rose instead of supplementing Rose's multidimensionality with more multi dimensional players. We'll see how Mirotic and the rookie do, but I was not a fan of the Hamilton signing, nor was I a big believer in most other SG free agent signings. So yes, I do believe management can do wrong. In fact, I also think showing up to a meeting with Melo with less than the max in the bank is wrong and dumb.
No Clever Moniker wrote:
It has been a challenge this past week to listen to the radio because it really doesn't matter what Rose says, someone is going to take him to task for the most superfluous of reasons. People (hosts, callers, posters) frequently end their homily with asking Rose to STFU (or the equivalent), and yet the latest incident is about him opening his mouth and giving answers to questions the context of which are not clear. The whole recruiting thing has been blown completely out of proportion with hosts now proclaiming that it is now a requisite part of a superstar's job.
Given the general tradition of prominent players helping the team (not just management) out by helping to woo key personnel to the team, yes it is less than tactful for Rose and/or Rose's team to let it float that Rose wasn't planning on being present for Melo's meeting, and that him meeting Melo was a mere coincidence. It's not part of a star's job to recruit, but when guys on your team are all in on the voluntary recruiting job, you refusing to join in doesn't reflect well on many different levels.
More reports have come out indicating that yes perhaps Rose was there deliberately for Melo, so like you said it's not really clear what we're dealing with there. Anyway, I did say in my post that my criticism of Rose is only valid insofar as the reports about him being there to workout - and not meet Melo - are accurate. If that's not accurate, then I retract my criticism.
No Clever Moniker wrote:
In the above quote--and VeganFan I cite you merely as an example--both KD and Westbrook are assumed to do the recruiting, along with Dirk and others. I won't ask you how you know they were recruiting but I am curious to know "who" they were recruiting and how successful they were? In Houston and L.A., which superstar players were tasked with sending out text messages for reporters to read? In the end, everyone now deems the whole point of texting a recruiting pitch to be a waste of time and effort in having an impact in landing Carmelo Anthony. But who is going to step up and say they were also stupid in putting such an emphasis upon Rose?
There's no assuming going on here. Players have indeed made well-publicized cameos during recruiting pitches to this year's free agent class. You have Gibson and Noah in Chicago, Noah again in LA for Gasol, and KD, Westbrook for Gasol in LA as well, Dirk in Dallas for Anthony, and Howard and Harden for Anthony in Houston.
You can check these stories out for confirmation:
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/11170 ... -pau-gasolhttp://www.bizjournals.com/houston/morn ... river.htmlhttp://www.yardbarker.com/nba/articles/ ... y/16785292No Clever Moniker wrote:
When the Bulls built the Berto Center they had curtains installed to prevent people from watching practices, media rooms with restricted access, and security throughout the building. Their message was one that they not only controlled but sought to restrict (or discredit) those that didn't repeat it. Jerry Krause is gone but a new generation of "reporter" now follows the team and they don't think to not follow the unwritten rules. Radio hosts know that the United Center VIP treatment is not extended to those who may question Bulls management (the Valet who warms the car in the dead of winter is one of many nice touches).
I'm not sure what you're trying to say here, though this could be more my fault than yours. If Rose was "working out" in the UC, then there is likely no way he could have not known Melo was scheduled to arrive the same day. There are a number of reasons for this, but perhaps the strongest are:
1) Massive banners adorning the UC were switched out to showcase Melo in a faux Bulls jersey, and other electronic signage displayed prominent "Welcome Melo," or whatever, signs during the whole day. If this didn't clue Rose in then we've got a bigger problem than just his knees.
2) Rose's friends/teammates Noah and Gibson were scheduled to be there the same day to greet Melo. This doesn't prove they communicated with one another about Melo, but I personally find it highly suspicious to claim you didn't know Melo was going to be present when Noah and Gibson were in the same building for that purpose.
No Clever Moniker wrote:
Maybe the Rose camp knew far more about the situation than others are aware? Maybe, through channels of their own, they had already reached out to Anthony and knew the true reality of the situation (why recruit something that isn't going to happen?).
My take on this is simple: if Noah and Gibson are dedicating some offseason time together to recruit Melo for the good of the team, and if KD and Westbrook are doing the same for OKC, ditto for Dirk and Howard/Harden, then why isn't Rose? The impression is he's above the team. In 2010 I somewhat respected Rose's anti-recruiting stance because the big fish back then would have been Luol Deng's replacement - I figured he'd recruit using back channels. That rationale doesn't apply here, so, again, if the report is true then all of this cannot be rationalized in a way that makes Rose look good.
In the end, criticism of Rose here can be independent of one's feelings on management - they aren't linked.