FLIP THE SCRIPT
Revolutionizing the showcase: Innovative twists to ignite the NBA All-Star Game
Dec 29, 2023, 8:00 am
FLIP THE SCRIPT
Voting has begun on NBA.com for the 73rd NBA All-Star Game, scheduled for Feb. 18 at Gainbridge Field House in Indianapolis.
The game will return to the traditional Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference format – no more schoolyard choose-up game played by gazillionaires going through the motions before one last shopping spree at the local mall.
Here’s a better idea: instead of East vs. West, make the game a contest between U.S. players and international players. Switch the location for the game back and forth, one year in the U.S., next year in Europe or Africa. Then the guys will have something to play for.
Basketball is a geographical contradiction. While it’s the only major sport 100-percent “invented” in the U.S., albeit by a Canadian grad student in Massachusetts, basketball belongs to the world now.
About 30 percent of the NBA (125 players from 40 countries) is comprised of players born outside our borders. Every team in the NBA has at least one international player. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks lead the way with eight foreign-born players. The current Rockets roster has four international players: Dillon Brooks (Canada), Alperen Sengun (Turkey), Boban Marganovic (Serbia) and Jock Landale (Australia).
The NBA doesn’t just have open borders – foreign-born players, once novelties, dominate the league. If the best U.S. players took the court against the best international players – and they played the game for real - I’m thinking the opening Vegas line would favor international players by 10 points.
Consider, the last five Most Valuable Players come from foreign lands: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece) in 2019 and 2020, Nikola Jokic (Serbia) in 2021 and 2022) and Joel Embiid (Cameroom) in 2023.
By the way, the first international player to be named MVP was Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon from Nigeria in 1993.
Four of the five current leading scorers are international players. 1 - Joel Embiid (34.4 ppg). 2 – Luka Doncic from Slovenia (32.9). 3 - Kevin Durant from the U.S. (31.0). 4 – Shae Gilgeous-Alexander from Canada (30.7), and 5 - Giannis Antetokounmpo (30.6).
The first pick in the 2023 NBA draft was Victor Wembanyama from France. He was the 14th international player to go No. 1 overall.
OK, it’s time to announce the starting lineups and reserves for the 2023 U.S. vs. International All-Star Game.
International frontcourt: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid – the last five MVPs. Backcourt: Shae Gilgeous Alexander and Luka Doncic.
Reserves: Jamal Murray (Canada), Kyrie Irving (Australia), Rudy Gobert (France), Pascal Siakam (Cameroon), Bojan Bogdanovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina), and Kristaps Porzingis (Latvia).
Is there any reason to go on? The line just moved, international team by 12 points.
U.S. frontcourt: Anthony Davis (because the team needs a center), Kevin Durant, LeBron James (because he’s LeBron James) but should be Jayson Tatum. Backcourt: Steph Curry and Devin Booker.
Reserves: Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, De’Aaron Fox, Donovan Mitchell, Damian Lillard, Anthony Edwards, Jalen Brunson and Trae Young.
Vegas line now internationals by 15.
I’m still taking the international team and let’s make it a parlay with the over (plus-minus 275).
The woeful state of the Astros' farm system has made it very expensive to continue maintaining a good team, prohibitively so (in part self-imposed) from having a great team. Even if they re-sign Alex Bregman, trading Framber Valdez and/or Kyle Tucker for prospects could snap the Astros' run of eight straight postseason appearances. But if they KNOW that no way do they intend to offer Framber five years 130 million dollars, Tucker 7/225 or whatever their free agent markets might be after next season, keeping them for 2025 but getting nothing but 2026 compensatory draft picks for them could do multi-year damage to the franchise.
Preliminary Kyle Tucker trade talks between the Astros and Cubs involve both Seiya Suzuki and Isaac Paredes, sources tell @Ken_Rosenthal and me - https://t.co/kIRATDQpEn
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) December 11, 2024
The time is here for the Astros to be aggressively shopping both. It doesn't make trading them obligatory, but even though many purported top prospects amount to little or nothing (look up what the Astros traded to Detroit for Justin Verlander, to Pittsburgh for Gerrit Cole, to Arizona for Zack Greinke) if strong packages are offered the Astros need to act if unwilling (reasonably or not) to pay Valdez/Tucker.
Last offseason the Milwaukee Brewers traded pitching ace Corbin Burnes one season ahead of his free agency and then again won the National League Central, the San Diego Padres dealt Juan Soto and wound up much improved and a playoff team after missing the 2023 postseason. But nailing the trades is critical. The Brewers got their everyday rookie third baseman Joey Ortiz and two other prospects. The Padres got quality starter Michael King, catcher Kyle Hagashioka, and three prospects.
Back to Bregman
Meanwhile, decision time approaches for Alex Bregman. He, via agent Scott Boras, wants 200-plus million dollars. Don't we all. If he can land that from somebody, congratulations. The Astros' six-year 156 million dollar contract offer is more than fair. That's 26 million dollars per season and would take Bregman within a few months of his 37th birthday. If rounding up to 160 mil gets it done, ok I guess. Going to 200 would be silly.
While Bregman hasn't been a superstar (or even an All-Star) since 2019, he's still a very good player. That includes his 2024 season which showed decline offensively. Not falling off a cliff decline other than his walk rate plunging about 45 percent, but decline. If Bregman remains the exact player he was this season, six-156 is pricey but not crazy in the current marketplace. But how likely is Bregman to not drop off further in his mid-30s? As noted before, the storyline is bogus that Bregman has been a postseason monster. Over seven League Championship Series and four World Series Bregman has a .196 batting average.
The Astros already should be sweating some over Jose Altuve having shown marked decline this season, before his five year 125 million dollar extension covering 2025-2029 even starts. Altuve was still very good offensively though well down from 2022 and 2023 (defensively his data are now awful), but as he approaches turning 35 years old in May some concern is warranted when locked into paying a guy until he's nearly 39 1/2.
Jim Crane is right in noting that long contracts paying guys huge money in their later years generally go poorly for the clubs.
Bang for your buck
Cleveland third baseman Jose Ramirez is heading into the second year of a five-year, $124 million extension. That's 24.8 million dollars per season. Jose Ramirez is a clearly better player than Alex Bregman. Ramirez has been the better player for five consecutive seasons, and only in 2023 was it even close. It should be noted that Ramirez signed his extension in April of 2022. He is about a year and a half older than Bregman so the Guardians are paying their superstar through his age 36 season.
Bregman benefits from playing his home games at soon-to be named Daikin Park. Bregman hit 26 home runs this year. Using ball-tracking data, if he had played all his games in Houston, Bregman would have hit 31 homers. Had all his swings been taken at Yankee Stadium, the "Breggy Bomb" count would have been 25. In Cleveland, just 18. Ramirez hit 41 dingers. If all his games were home games 40 would have cleared the fences, if all had been at Minute Maid Park 47 would have been gone.
Matt Chapman recently signed a six-year 151 million dollar deal to stay with the San Francisco Giants. That's 25.166 million per season. Chapman was clearly a better player than Bregman this year. But it's the only season of Chapman's career that is the case. Chapman is 11 months older than Bregman, so his lush deal with the Giants carries through his age 37 season.
The Giants having overpaid Chapman doesn't obligate the Astros to do the same with Bregman. So, if you're the Astros do you accept overpaying Bregman? They would almost certainly be worse without him in 2025, but what about beyond? Again, having not one elite prospect in their minor league system boxes them in. Still, until/unless the Seattle Mariners upgrade their offense, the Astros cling to American League West favorites status. On the other hand, WITH Bregman, Tucker, and Valdez the Astros are no postseason lock.
For Texans’ conversation, catch Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me on our Texans On Tap podcasts. Thursdays feature a preview of the upcoming game, and then we go live (then available on demand) after the final gun of the game: Texans on Tap - YouTube
The Astros are always in season for discussion. Our Stone Cold ‘Stros podcasts drop Mondays: Click here to watch!