nba 2k17 myteam a new mantra is afoot

that is not the name of a new indie band. it is the current emotional state of the nba's fan base, and not a few of its teams, after a week of seemingly insane contracts to marginal talent, the formation of another super team -- this one in golden state -- and the resulting belief that the league will be wholly uncompetitive in the near future, leading to a likely opt-out of the current collective bargaining agreement by december and a potential lockout next summer.

it is not timofey mozgov's fault that the los angeles lakers offered him, a player who barely got off the bench during the cleveland cavaliers' run to a 2016 finals victory, $64 million over four years. but mozgov is the poster child for this summer of spending because his was among the first deals done, in the first minutes of july 1.

the first of a new thing is always a shock to the system. the first time you saw michael jackson moonwalk, you literally did not know how to process it. what did he just do? what was that? and so it was with mozgov's contract and all that followed.

there's the reported $153 million the memphis grizzlies agreed to with incumbent coin guard mike conley, who's never made an all-star team. the grizzles also reportedly gave $94 million to chandler parsons, a frequently-injured player who's had microfracture surgery on a knee already, when he signed last week. there's the reported $94 million that harrison barnes -- who petered out in the finals against cleveland, to the tune of 5 of 32 shooting the last three games -- got from the dallas mavericks when he signed.

the houston rockets reportedly gave $20 million a year to ryan anderson, a good stretch four who's also battled injuries the last few years, when he officially signed saturday. and there's the reported $75 million deal portland trail blazers guard allen crabbe, an up and coming small forward who started eight games last season, got from the brooklyn nets (which the blazers matched sunday).