Editorials, Michael Cousins Bowling Blog, USBC Open Championships
USBC Open Championships Free Agency Has Begun
With The New USBC OC Rules Team Rosters Will Be Getting Major Changes
By Michael Cousins
[addthis tool=”addthis_inline_share_toolbox”]NBA isn’t the only sport currently in its Free Agency period.
“Free Agency has begun,” a Facebook friend so elegantly put it. And it is true. The OC Free Agency period is amongst us, and teams are trying to find the best players eligible to compete with.
We have gone over the new rule changes many (MANY) times now, so I won’t get into in this blog, but to say that they’re a little on the strict side is putting it mildly. And teams have some tough decisions to make now.
In some of these cases, these teams have bowled together for decades — literally — and replacing that level of trust and camaraderie will not be easy. But that isn’t stopping anyone from trying.
I have talked to many different players, from many different teams. Some of them have a plan, some of them have a team, some of them have absolutely no idea what they’re going to do, and some of them aren’t even sure that they’ll bowl the tournament again.
And I understand that sentiment.
Some Teams That Have Been Bowling Together For Decades Will Need To Break Apart
Being told you can no longer bowl with your best friends, guys that you’ve competed with for years and years, bowlers that you’ve had great success with, sucks. But it is what it is, and all we can do now is accept and adapt.
And from some of the teams I have heard from, there will still be many, many great teams. And there are still many teams “stacking” the deck, if you will. And they should. I have never understood the gripe against teams loading up with talent. As a player, you are trying to win, and surround yourself with talent. And you should do whatever it takes to do just that.
No matter what the rules are, there will always be “stacked” teams. Even if you change the eligibility rules. The best teams are just going to find the best available, eligible players. And, again, they should. And they will.
Teams are looking for their LeBron James. And while teams don’t have to work within a salary cap, they do still have to adhere to these new changes and attempt to find the very best eligible players.
I don’t particularly like the eligibility rule, and I hope it is eventually eradicated, but — I will say this — there is a whole lot of strategic maneuvering going on.
And not unlike the NBA’s Free Agency period, some of these new acquisitions won’t work out right away. There is a learning period and some acclimation time; players will have to get used to competing with new players that they may not be as familiar with.
But, in the end, just like in the NBA, talent always wins out. It’ll rise to the top and find success, regardless. The very best teams will succeed. The lesser competition will struggle. Such is sports.
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