"Collusion"

[madinmaryland]

[Forkboy]

1. "head on collusion"

What are we talking about? :)

[madinmaryland]

4. Dude! I know you are a big NASCAR fan, but I was not talking about

Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

:hide:

[Forkboy]

5. That was my only NASCAR joke.

Bastard!!!! :P

[Upton]

2. LeBronidict

[HughBeaumont]

3. Quite possible:

http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2010/07/inside_the_decision_miamis_cou.html

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- During a rally for Miami Heat fans Friday night, Chris Bosh said he had been talking with new teammates LeBron James and Dwyane Wade about the moment for months.

It was a slip, which some, including Bosh himself, caught. The premise that the trio had been talking about teaming up for months hinted there was a plan in place. That potentially would be against rules, and could raise concerns from the league since Bosh and James were playing for teams battling for the playoffs in Toronto and Cleveland.

Bosh quickly revised the statement and said they had been talking about it for "days." But it appears James, Bosh and Wade had been discussing this for years.

(snip)

In the ensuing years, four important events happened that were major contributors to their teaming in 2010.

First, the three had a positive and emotional summer in 2008 in China, winning the gold medal. They proved they could play effectively together. For the most part, they checked their egos, with Wade even deciding to come off the bench.

Second, Los Angeles-based management company Creative Artists Agency decided to get into the basketball agent business. Seeing how influential they could be in the summer of 2010, CAA bought the agencies that represented James, Bosh and Wade. Bringing them all under one roof gave CAA huge control of the market and took down any barriers the three would have with negotiations.

Third, the recession hit, and NBA owners started tightening their spending, a trend that would last for two years. The result was a bubble of salary-cap space that eventually would result in giving numerous teams large blocks of cap space in 2010.

Fourth, the struggling New York Knicks launched a plan in the fall of 2008 to clear off enough cap space to sign two maximum level free agents in an effort to recruit James to New York by promising to sign another star as well. Though he never said so directly, James began openly flirting with the thought. Other teams saw the opening and hatched the same plan.

More at the article . . . long but interesting . . .

[trumad]

8. Please---

Players are free to discuss plying with each other.

Those yelling collusion are either idiots or---just idiots.

[Yavin4]

11. Get Use To Being Hated

When you build a super team, your team will be hated.

[Upton]

12. Don't you mean BUY a super team?

the Yankees have built nothing, nor have they earned anything.

[Yavin4]

13. Ah, The Defender of Barroids Speaks

Just for you...27...with 28 in about three months or so.

[Onceuponalife]

6. Oh, I thought this was about Barry Bonds and his drug supplier.

[trumad]

7. Give it up dude...

I'm beginning to think that Cboy has taken your user name.

[madinmaryland]

9. Dude! This is almost as fun as tweaking cboy!

:D

[PRETZEL]

10. That they were talking about playing together isn't so much an issue

I would think that would be fairly common where players want to play on the same team.

What would bother me is if the Heat owners and management knew about it before hand and had contract terms in mind for all three players.