I dapped that dahell picture, but I agree with Tre. The dynamic is different, for a lot of reasons, one being the inarguable ineptitude of the Timberwolves organization.
A review of the Timberwolves front office ineptitude is so staggering it’s difficult to choose the most ludicrous characteristic: the incestuous nature of the NBA in general and the Wolves specifically; the tendency of the organization to reward mediocre retreads; the lack of obvious qualifications among those hired; the inanity of the decisions made by those whose hirings themselves were strange enough to begin with.
In 1994 the Timberwolves hired Kevin McHale as soon as he retired from playing; in under two years McHale went from the nebulous job description of TV analyst/Special Assistant to Assistant GM to Vice President of Basketball Operations – at which point McHale promptly hired his former college teammate Flip Saunders as head coach. McHale drafted Kevin Garnett, then undercut that move by colluding with Joe Smith to manipulate the NBA’s salary cap regulations, thus handicapping the franchise’s ability to build during Garnett’s prime.
McHale would later fire Saunders, assume coaching duties for 31 games, hire and quickly fire Dwane Casey, promote then-assistant Randy Wittman, give former Celtic teammate Danny Ainge the gift of Kevin Garnett and an immediate championship, fire Randy Wittman and assume the head coaching position again for a season before leaving to take the same job in Houston. Meanwhile, Saunders went on to coach in Detroit and Washington, the latter of which fired him and replaced him with… Randy Wittman. Within a year Flip Saunders became part-owner of and President of Basketball Operations for the Timberwolves. At the end of this past season, Saunders became, once again, the Wolves’ head coach. Rational observers are left to wonder if the NBA executive fraternity is actually a favor-trading sect of Scientology.
Can anyone fault Kevin Love for his confusion about and lack of faith in organizational direction? Not only have Wolves’ officials failed to surround him with suitable talent, they have openly and consistently antagonized their best player. There has long been a tendency within the organization to measure Love by his weaknesses rather than his strengths. Randy Wittman discouraged Love from utilizing his range; Kurt Rambis kept Love on an inexplicably tight leash, rarely inserting him in the starting lineup and sitting him for long stretches despite production that was impressive by the most basic and advanced statistical measures.
Love languished on thin-on-talent rosters that seemed cobbled together by sheer whimsy. Sports reporter turned real estate mogul turned basketball executive David Kahn submitted a 4 year stint as GM that was so beyond the grasp of logic it could have served as the answer to “what if David Lynch made a movie about a General Manager in the NBA?”
During Kahn’s tenure the Wolves drafted Ricky Rubio, Johnny Flynn, and Ty Lawson in the same draft (Rubio and Flynn while Steph Curry was still available), then promptly shipped Lawson out in a pre-arranged deal; selected Wesley Johnson when Demarcus Cousins, Paul George, Greg Monroe, and Larry Sanders were still available; picked Derrick Williams ahead of Klay Thompson and Kawhi Leonard; drafted Chandler Parsons and traded him for cash the same night. They also purged a young, super-skilled Al Jefferson, then used the resultant cap space for… Darko Milicic.
Against any hint of self-preservation, Love was still willing to sign a five-year max contract that would’ve guaranteed his presence until 2017 – but the Wolves’ expressed skepticism of his worth, preferring a shorter deal with a player option. Owner Glenn Taylor wondered aloud if Love could be deemed a star given the Wolves’ lack of playoff appearances. In recent weeks Flip Saunders advised Love to redirect his frustrations with the lack of team success inward (aka STFU). To call the organization’s relationship with Kev Luv X dysfunctional would be understatement.
Also, people weren't overly critical,of Chris Paul for doing a similar thing - which is to exercise some semblance of control over his career while it was clearly being wasted by a bumbling franchise - when he wanted out of New Orleans.
Now, do white players in American sports tend to get less criticism than blacks for similar behavior at times? Inarguably. But this is a case that isn't quite as cut and dry as that.
cuz he's white.Just like when asik acted like a bytch cuz he lost his starting job.Whites look away when fellow cacs do questionable acts it's always been that way
