Superstar empowerment is not the same as player empowerment

Photo by Mark Blinch/NBAE via Getty ImagesThe topic of player empowerment has become as prevalent in recent discussions about the NBA as it has been controversial.

One side sees superstars unapologetically exerting their power as a big advancement, while the other laments that teams losing control is actually hurting the league and its fans. In a lot of ways, it’s the central debate of this era in the NBA.

Yet for such an inescapable topic, there seems to be a fundamental mistake in how it’s too often approached. Equating superstars’ empowerment to overall player empowerment clouds the discussion to the point of making it meaningless.

For all the talk about empowerment, the players as a…