 It's NBA trade season, so I gotta ask, how many times are we going to fall for this? You guys will have me back. I plan on resigning here next year. Boom! So... By this, I mean the same pomp and circumstance every time a star player is involved in a trade rumor. It always starts off with a tweet from some unverified source to get the engines running. It simmers for a couple days before a reputable reporter chimes in and confirms what the internet is talking about using their source who always wants to be anonymous. It's at this point where the player has no choice but to chime in because in the eyes of many, silence is an admission of guilt. What they have to say is all but assured. Some version of, I love this city. I love the fans. I don't want to go anywhere, or even a flat-out denial of said reports. We gotta ask, why did you choose that t-shirt? I didn't choose it. I actually didn't choose it. It was hanging for me already. Every fan of the team is going to gobble this up and defend them to the end. Play the hits, baby. Next, the rumors evolve. This is when the player has rallied the fan base to defend his honor and gives the green light to his agent to submit the trade demand behind the scenes. The request is delivered to two places, the franchise's front office, and a popular national reporter with connections to the agency. That's usually when we get some version of a wojpa. As NBA Twitter circles like a bunch of hyenas and feeds on the scraps while laughing hysterically, the star will more than likely chime in with a team appreciation sentimental social media post. This could be a flashback, a flex, something about the city that they are humbled and blessed to have experienced. Or whatever their social media equivalent of the boys are back in town is. Some hours, even days may pass. And if there is no updates to the situation, you can almost certainly expect some form of a cryptic Instagram story update super late at night. It could be that, some emojis without context, whatever the player is comfortable being petty with. As we've learned so many times in the NBA, where there's smoke, there's fire. And at some point, the player is probably gone one way or another. But no, no, no, no, no. That's not the end of the journey. No star player leaves without the full page thank you in the local newspaper. This costs him a drop in the bucket and it all but guarantees he's going to get a standing ovation when he makes his return to the city. Star players have been running this playbook for years because, one, it could be authentic. I'm sure these players really do care about the team, the fans and the community that they've been a part of. But also, two, it works. Why would you ever fix something that isn't broken? So the next time you see a star begin to run this algorithm, remember, it's not personal, it's just good business.