12 Superstars We Can’t Imagine Playing for Any Other Team
Like peanut butter and tofu, changing these combos would just be...weird.
Kevin Durant and Dwyane Wade have exercised their rights as free agents to leave the cities they’ve long represented behind, sending Oklahoma City and Miami into the depths of despair only Clevelanders have previously known (but all is forgiven, of course, since LeBron returned and brought a championship with him).
Sure, there’s a litany of great players who’ve remained with one franchise for their entire careers – Derek Jeter, Tony Gwynn, Kobe Bryant, Troy Aikman and Mario Lemieux, to name a few. However, there are also those who’ve suited up for teams other than the ones we remember. Michael Jordan was a Wizard. Joe Montana was a Chief. Brett Favre was a Jet (and a Viking). Emmitt Smith was a Cardinal. Martin Brodeur was a Blue. Willie Mays was a Met. The list goes on and on.
And while some players head to different teams in the twilight of their career (we’re looking at you, Peyton Manning), sometimes they do so while at the top of their game (smile, Albert Pujols), which shake their previous fan bases to the core.
Durant and Wade are heading out for greener pastures (and green in their bank accounts) after becoming so aligned with a city that it’s tough to comprehend. There are still plenty of stars who are synonymous with their teams it’s tough to picture them playing for anyone else. Here’s a (totally not comprehensive) look at some of them.