The 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.