One of the articles was pointing out that NFL players no longer fear the coach, as he has little cutting or keeping authority. If a player gets a large signing bonus, the team can't afford to cut him because they take the salary cap hit all in one year. Winning is seen as being for "the man", so the goal is not to win a championship, but to get the big dollars and party. A few years ago some player whose name I forget commented that winning a championship was less important to him than being an all star, because being an all star put more dollars in his pocket. It caused quite a stir back then, but I think that the "team" concept is completely gone from the NBA and is seriously in jeopardy in the NFL. However, the teams that play like teams are ultimately more successful. The Colts and Patriots have been very successful, but don't have a large number of stars. Chad Johnson with the Bengals gets far more publicity with his silly touchdown dances and goof talk than Marvin Harrison does by being one of the best receivers in the league every year.
In the NBA, look at the original "Dream Team" and compare them to the guys now: Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Karl Malone, Scottie Pippen, Chris Mullin Clyde Drexler, John Stockton and Christian Laettner. Not only were each of those guys great, but they were all team players.
Good points. It's pretty obvious that NBA "teams" that are just vehicles for one arrogant superstar like Iverson or Bryant won't win against true teams. Apparently those guys put being the main man on the team ahead of winning. This is why a team of decent team players like the Jazz can win games against these superstars. Sure, Iverson might make 50 points a game. But a championship? Highly unlikely.