Atlanta Hawks' dysfunction pushed Josh Childress to sign with Olympiakos
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You can't blame Childress for heading overseas to count and guard Euros. You can blame the NBA's biggest laughingstock, The ATL, for encouraging his overseas migration. For decades, the Hawks have been the NBA's Siberia, an outpost for millionaire hoopsters. The oddball franchise only made national news when Jon Koncak got his 'contract' or J.R. Rider got arrested ...
 Option 1: work less, earn more, pay no tax, pay no living expenses, and live in a beautiful country loaded with history. Option 2: work more, earn less, pay taxes, pay for a house and car, and work for an incompetent organization that never values employees. It’s an easy choice and by a ‘big country’ mile. You’d take option one. I’d take option one. And we'd both take it quicker than you can say option one. So why can’t Josh Childress take option one? Why can’t the swingman take Olympiakos’ 20 million dollar contract over the Hawks’ mid-level exception? That’s what it came to for the young swingman. NBA or not, Greece is option one and Atlanta is option two. With Olympiakos, he’ll work less, get a higher salary, pay no tax on his higher salary, spend nothing on a house or car, and, to top it off, reside in an interesting country. Why the Childress backlash? Keep in mind the sixth man isn't a typical NBA baller. He went to Stanford for four years, so playing in a different continent isn’t a big deal. You can’t blame Childress for heading overseas to count and guard Euros. You can, however, blame the NBA’s biggest laughingstock, the Hawks, for encouraging his departure. For decades, The ATL has been the NBA’s Siberia, an outpost for millionaire hoopsters. And the oddball franchise only made national news when Jon Koncak got his ‘contract’ or when J.R. Rider got arrested. Recently, the on-court product improved. However, off-court operations were still a mess. In the last two years alone, owners have sued each other, blocked trade offers for superstar Amare Stoudemire, and encouraged management to draft players strictly for marketing. This year, executive Billy Knight wasn’t allowed to fire his coach. And, after pushing the world champion Celtics to seven games in their first playoff appearance since before the Titanic, the club has now failed to keep their young core together. Childress is gone. Josh Smith could easily be next. One step forward, several steps back for dysfunctional Atlanta. Yeah, I'd say option one was an easy choice for Childress. Agree or disagree with Childress' decision? Are the Hawks to blame? Get at us in the comment box below and come back to HoopsVibe The Blog more NBA tidbits. Photo courtesy of wmirek's on-line portfolio. |
I have to disagree about the "paradise" part. While much of Greece is picturesque, Athens is the poster child for overpopulation, pollution and poor urban planning. I stayed with family in the suburb in which Olympiakos play last week, and in just the three days I was in town there were numerous power failures, a strike by the city's truck drivers that brought traffic to a halt, and a car bomb set off by an "activist" group a few blocks from the house.
Next to the obvious financial incentives, the major selling point for Childress will be the fan following. He was a top story in the national news all day yesterday, and I'd wager that he's already known by more people in Athens than in Atlanta. Basketball may be a North American sport, but you'd have a hard time finding a more dedicated, informed audience than here in Greece. If he can come in and produce consistently, he'll be treated like a king around here, and that goes a long way in keeping players happy.