Andrew Bynum is quite the headline-grabber these days.
After his stint went horribly wrong with the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was traded to the Chicago Bulls, who subsequently waived him. Now he’s an unrestricted free agent, able to sign with the team of choosing, likely for a minimum salary.
How did we get here?
Seriously, how did we get here?
Once a top prospect heralded as the biggest threat to Dwight Howard’s “Best Center” throne, injuries and personality deficiencies have left Bynum here. He’s not an afterthought, but he’s also not the building block he was projected to be. He’s a role player, operating on degenerative knees, with a checkered past few NBA teams are willing to roll the dice on.
Or maybe not.
ESPN’s Marc Stein recently revealed a laundry list of teams who have expressed exploratory interest in Bynum. Outfits like the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers, among others, are all expected to have interest.
Chief among any concerns with Bynum is will. At this point, that may be the only concern.
Production isn’t an issue, because no team in their right mind will bring Bynum in hoping he can return to All-Star form this season. Health also isn’t a huge concern, because for what Bynum will be paid and given his extensive history, no one’s going to expect him to be a key cog in their machine.
It all comes back to his will. To effort. To interest.
Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski was previously told that Bynum didn’t even want to play in the NBA anymore following his controversy in Cleveland:
About Bynum suspension, league source tells Yahoo: "He doesn't want to play basketball anymore. He never liked it that much in first place."
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) December 28, 2013
While sad, this wasn’t exactly a groundbreaking revelation.
Bynum has long been criticized for his effort and commitment to improvement, or lack thereof. He’s been labeled as immature and lazy, and his lethargy in Cleveland appeared to support Woj’s report. We always thought he would sign with a team out of sheer convenience, because he’s a 7-footer, and this is what 7-footers do.
But now we’re hearing something different.
Citing “well-placed” sources, CSNNW’s Chris Haynes brings word that Bynum has not given up on basketball and is “determined to prove everyone wrong.”
Assuming this is true, this makes you wonder where Bynum will ultimately sign. Playing for a contender will have obvious interest, but in order to prove everyone wrong, he has to play. More minutes are bound to be available on a team in transition.
A few squads, like the Clippers or Knicks, could have some serious playing time available, but that’s a big if. That said, Bynum’s continued or newfound or whatever-you-want-to-call-it interest in basketball is a great marketing ploy.
Thinking that he’s committed to reviving his career and reinventing his image, prospective teams won’t necessarily be as wary about pursuing him—especially at the price he can be had for. Thing is, do we honestly believe the 26-year-old Bynum is prepared to grow up after nearly 10 years of recurrent mishaps? Has he truly learned his lesson?
Is he actually ready to play drama-free, obviously engaged basketball?
Believe it when you see it.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com.
