Bradley Beal, the NBA’s leading scorer at 32.9 points per game, has been the subject of trade rumors for months despite the 27-year-old insisting he has no desire to leave Washington. This isn’t an instance of a disgruntled All-Star, fed up with losing, signaling his intention to play elsewhere. By all accounts, Beal seems perfectly content as a Wizard despite the team’s tepid performance this year (14-20).
In our current age of player empowerment, the prevailing sentiment, perpetuated by both the media and fans, is that players assigned to small-market teams (the Wizards being one of them) in the draft are less likely to stay there, preferring the branding opportunities afforded by big cities like Los Angeles, New York and Chicago. And while the added visibility of playing in a major media market is certainly a priority for some—LeBron James and Kevin Durant chose their respective teams with precisely that in mind—not all players share that mindset. And Jalen Rose thinks that’s okay. In fact, he applauds players who choose to do it the old-fashioned way.
“I’m sick of this era of people trying to dumb down the accomplishments of these great players into ring-counting,” argued Rose, pushing back on the idea that players should only be measured by how many championships they’ve won. “Now what are we going to do? Are we going to look up in a couple years and say Ja [Morant] should leave Memphis? Or Luka [Doncic] should leave Dallas? Or Zion should leave New Orleans?”
It used to be that players, before free agency was as prevalent as it is now, would often spend their entire careers with one team. Beginning with his “Decision” in 2010, LeBron took a hatchet to that narrative, maintaining his stature as a global icon despite changing uniforms seemingly every few years. James is often credited with normalizing the concept of “super teams,” though loyalty to one team still exists, as evidenced by Giannis Antetokounmpo’s decision to remain in Milwaukee long-term.
“I like that the Greek Freak stayed with the Bucks. I like that [Damian] Lillard stayed with the Portland Trail Blazers,” expressed Rose during Monday’s Jalen & Jacoby on ESPN2. “It’s not stopping you in endorsements. Who gets more commercials than Dame? It’s not because he’s in a large market. It’s because he’s a great player! They’ll find you.”
The idea that a player’s legacy or overall worth could be diminished by what team they play for doesn’t sit well with Rose, who is sick of players like Beal and Lillard being cast aside for slumming it in smaller markets. “Media members need to stop making players like Bradley Beal think that their career is meaningless because the Washington Wizards won’t win the championship this year.”
Rose’s assertion that Beal and Lillard don’t get the respect they deserve is debatable—both are perennial All-Stars with career earnings well into nine figures. But he’s not wrong about the media’s longstanding bias toward players in more prominent markets.
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