Phx-Suns.Net

I do wonder how we’d react if this were someone other than Dragic. Tom Ziller hinted at this Thursday morning when he compared it to the Carmelo Anthony situation in 2010. If Bledsoe and LeBron’s management company had done the same thing Dragic did and hijacked the Suns front office at the 11th hour of the trade deadline, would everyone be sympathizing with Bledsoe’s frustration? Or would we be writing open letters again? Maybe it’s because of the way Dragic plays, or maybe it’s because he’s white, but it seems like he got a pass through all of this. The Suns were winning, the three-guard lineup was working — albeit thanks in part to Dragic’s sacrifice — and the front office was pretty clear it would move Thomas this summer if Dragic wanted it, along with (probably) offering him a max deal. He wasn’t exactly a martyr.

Protections

Fun fact: There will never again be an NBA draft pick sent anywhere that doesn’t have several layers of protection, so much so that you’re really not even sure what any team just got. That 2016 first-rounder? Protected 1-13, and 27-30 on the back end. Then it rolls over to 2017 and it’s protected 1-8, and also 17-22, with an option to flip picks in 2019, and a corollary that Sam Hinkie gets the pick if it lands at exactly 23.

carey wrote:I think there's a lot of truth to that. It also has to do with his previous reputation as the nicest guy in the league. I could think of a dozen players this second if they pulled what Goran did we'd be reading articles about it till our eyeballs fell out.

Also in that article...

Protections

Fun fact: There will never again be an NBA draft pick sent anywhere that doesn’t have several layers of protection, so much so that you’re really not even sure what any team just got. That 2016 first-rounder? Protected 1-13, and 27-30 on the back end. Then it rolls over to 2017 and it’s protected 1-8, and also 17-22, with an option to flip picks in 2019, and a corollary that Sam Hinkie gets the pick if it lands at exactly 23.

We just got one....

da_suns_fan wrote:I disagree. All season I laughed at people who said his "numbers were down" and just completely disregarded how little he got the ball now.

carey wrote:

Protections

Fun fact: There will never again be an NBA draft pick sent anywhere that doesn’t have several layers of protection, so much so that you’re really not even sure what any team just got. That 2016 first-rounder? Protected 1-13, and 27-30 on the back end. Then it rolls over to 2017 and it’s protected 1-8, and also 17-22, with an option to flip picks in 2019, and a corollary that Sam Hinkie gets the pick if it lands at exactly 23.

We just got one....

Mori Chu wrote:I think the columnist probably shouldn't have mentioned Dragic's race. I don't think the treatment of Dragic is because of his race, and bringing it up gives the article an awkward tone.

The Bobster wrote:That said, I would agree that white players are generally perceived as good citizens unless they do something to prove otherwise, black players are frequently not given the benefit of the doubt.

wpmiller42 wrote:Off topic, but I hate all these draft pick protections. Trade a pick or don't already. I hope the NBA gets rid of pick protections down the line.

Ring_Wanted wrote:

da_suns_fan wrote:I disagree. All season I laughed at people who said his "numbers were down" and just completely disregarded how little he got the ball now.

It's also true that he had no explosion around the basket to begin the season, and his shot was off both from 3pt and midrange.