Raja Bell still bitter about trade

[spectre]

Departure from Charlotte remains bitter pill for Bell

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Initially, Warriors guard Raja Bell planned to adhere to the "if you ain't got nothing good to say" adage when asked about his return to the Charlotte Bobcats, with whom he played 50 games bridging two seasons.

"I don't have anything very positive to say about it," he said before his first game in his former home arena. "I don't have anything very negative to say about it."

But when pressed, he couldn't stop the regret and frustration from spilling out.

"I did not like the way things ended here with the Bobcats," he said. "I felt like I was used a little bit. They played on the fact that I am a guy who wants to play and wants to please and they played on that and, uh, it cost me my season."

Bell said he was pressured to play with an injured left wrist, which he sustained in a preseason game Oct. 18. He said he asked to have arthroscopic surgery on his wrist to determine if the ligament was torn but said he was talked out of it.

He eventually learned the ligament was torn, but he needed surgery to determine how bad and how long it would take to heal. Still, Bell decided to play through the pain since the Bobcats were hoping to make the playoffs.

He averaged 31.4 minutes while playing five of the first six games.

"At the end of the day, every decision is the player's," he said. "They can't make you play. But let's just say there were not-so-subtle hints that I needed to be playing and that I really needed to help the team by playing."

On Nov. 15, the morning after playing 31 minutes against Portland, he was traded to the Warriors along with Vladimir Radmanovic for Stephen Jackson and Acie Law. After the trade, Bell got his wrist checked out and learned for sure he needed surgery — but not before surprising the Warriors with 23 minutes in a loss at Boston on Nov. 18.

[Toocool]

Basketball is a business. Like all businesses, it can be utterly ruthless. There are ugly sides to basketball, people can get hurt from being traded around like pawns on a chess board. I miss Bell, but as a franchise sometimes you have to hurt people to get better. It does suck since I loved what Bell brought to the table, but at the end of the day this is still a business. Owners still want to make money and win championships.

[BRNC]

...that is no "real justification" (BB is a business is well known) for risking further injury or possibly causing a players career to be shortened prematurely...and if players (around the league) get the impression that this organization will only "use players" it will be difficult to sign any FA...

[ND22]

I understand his bitterness, and I'm sure when he came down with the injury the FO panicked a little bit; they knew they couldn't trade an injured Bell so they persuaded him to play so they could get the Jackson deal done.

[GoBobs]

I have to think the trade went down in part because of the injury. I feel sorry for Bell he seems to be a great guy and he didn't deserve that the way he has played for us. I wish we could make it up to him by offering him a sweet contract this summer, but our cap situation sucks. We could always do a 1yr 5 mil so he could get back the season he lost but we would be in cap hell. I could see how he would be frustrated being out the whole year in the last year of his contract.

[Dcarnys]

Be honest I wouldn't mind trying to get Raja back. Doubt it would happen though.

[dnbman]

That's not the best way to treat a player.

However, we've been doing right by a lot of players, especially in terms of contracts, for a while now. So, I think we have some stored karma to live with this.

That was a crucial trade for us.

[teej]

I love Raja. He did more in less than a year than just about anyone short of Crash, Ray, and Jack have done for this franchise. He's a brilliant guy, and one of the toughest competitors ever.

But

He'd already been traded by Larry Brown once, he knew the risks of being an expiring contract when he moved his family here with just a year left on the contract, and like he said, it's all up to him in the end. Only 25 guys, maybe less, can consider themselves untradable, and not many more than that can feel too stable. Raja wasn't even in the top 150, and while he's a great guy, he can't complain about this.

I don't know if I want it to sound this way or not, but I think he's more upset at the fact he got sent to the Warriors than he is about how he was treated. Maybe that's just me. I'd love for him to be back here, but if he doesn't feel the same way, I won't think any less of him, nor will I thank him any less for helping to make last year enjoyable and mentor the young guys.

[TheBeagle]

-1 to spectre for starting this thread and reminding me how much I still miss Raja Ugh....

It was great to see him again last night, though obviously on the wrong bench.

[Ghost Kat]

Be honest I wouldn't mind trying to get Raja back.

I was thinking that when I read the thread title