Logano was a phenom, then a dud, now he’s on the brink of NASCAR title
Joey Logano thought he was done with years like 2017.
His move from Joe Gibbs Racing to Team Penske ahead of the 2014 had seemingly salvaged the one-time phenom’s career. He never qualified for the postseason during his four years with Joe Gibbs racing, but his move to Penske seemed to unlock his potential.
He finished sixth in the eighth standings in 2013, then reached the Championship 4 for the first time in 2014. In 2015, he slipped back to sixth before finishing as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series runner up in 2016. Seven years after becoming the youngest driver to win on the NASCAR Cup Series, Logano was on the brink of fulfilling all the promise arrived with.
Then it all fell apart again. By the middle of the 2017 season, Logan was finishing outside the top 20 almost as often as he was cracking the top 10. For the first time since joining Penske, Logano missed the postseason altogether.
“I think a lot of times you start taking things for granted in life,” Logano said earlier this week, “but God has a way of giving you a little reset and reminding you where you really stand.”
A year later, Logano has once again clawed his way back. The 28-year-old qualified for the Round of 8 — NASCAR’s semifinal — and at his first opportunity, he became the first driver to clinch a spot in the Championship 4.
Logano led 309 laps Sunday in Ridgeway, Va., on his way to a win at the First Data 500. The win means when he arrives in Homestead in November, Logano will be racing with a chance to hoist the championship trophy for the first time. Given his past success at Homestead-Miami Speedway, this could finally be the year everything comes together for one of the most hyped drivers in NASCAR history.
The early attention made him loathed, but it was certainly deserved. Logano was only 19 when he won the 2009 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 to become the youngest winner in the history of the Cup Series.
This was basically what everyone expected as Logano rose through the ranks on his way to debuting as an 18-yearold. When Logano was 15, veteran driver Mark Martin predicted the teenager “can be one of the greatest that ever raced in NASCAR.” When Logano was 16, fellow New England driver Randy LaJoie dubbed Logano, “Sliced Bread,” as in, “the best thing since sliced bread.”
For a subset of NASCAR fans and drivers, it made Logano’s steady unraveling with Joe Gibbs Racing a perverse joy.
Logano only won once more for Joe Gibbs following his record-setting initial victory. By the end of 2012, higher-ups within Gibbs were openly discussing Logano’s uncertain future with the team. The organization wanted to send Logano back to the minors. Last season couldn’t be the lowest moment of Logano’s career — it has to be, as he puts it, “losing my job.”
Logano was only 23. “Usually the moments that are the most difficult you learn the most about your race team and the most growth really happens,” Logano said, “so I don’t ever have any regrets.”
Now Logano is one race away from perhaps capping his greatest comeback move yet. If he wins the Ford EcoBoost 400 — or finishes ahead of the three other Championship 4 drivers — Logano will finally reach the heights believers like Martin, LaJoie and even Gibbs envisioned for him.
As the man who helped lure LeBron James back to Cleveland, David Griffin knows a thing or two about what megastars are looking for in free agency.
That’s why the former Cavaliers general manager believes Kevin Durant might regret it if he leaves the Warriors after this season.
“You talk about all the different reasons somebody would look to go to another franchise,” said Griffin, now an NBA TV analyst. “Fit often times comes into play. Market size comes into play. The ability to win comes into play . ... stop me when I say something that’s not perfect in Golden State for Kevin Durant.”
Griffin looks at what the Warriors have built and sees a loving home with plenty of space to accommodate multiple stars for years to come.
“Playing with Steph (Curry), he’s selfless, Draymond (Green is) selfless, Klay Thompson’s selfless,” Griffin said. “They all want to do whatever is required to win basketball games. If that can’t be your expression of joy and fit ... I’m not quite sure what it is you’re looking for that would make any sense.”
Mike Fratello, a longtime NBA coach and Griffin’s fellow NBA TV analyst, couldn’t agree more.
“I just think Kevin Durant’s the kind of guy that he’s happy where he is right now,” Fratello said. “(He’s) excited about what surrounds him and he’s smart enough to know ‘My job has become so much easier by having these people around me.’
“Why do you want to go somewhere else? I don’t know.”
Plus, money should be a big factor this time, Durant has said as much.
Durant will opt out of the second year of a contract that’s paying him $30 million this season and would have been worth $31.5 million next season. But that’s been part of his plan. To benefit both he and the Warriors, Durant has essentially signed three one-year contracts since joining Golden State, opting out after each of the first two seasons.
His three-year tenure here would then make Durant eligible for the supermax contract — available only to free agents who make the All-NBA team. And, finally owning his Bird Rights after the season, the Warriors would be able to offer him more money than any team.
“He knew when he signed this contract there in the beginning that he would not get to true max and have the opportunity to re-sign a long-term max deal until after the third year because of the nature of the salary cap,” Griffin said. “He knew exactly what he signed up for. So to me, a lot of this conversation is almost like masking a decision that’s already been made, to some degree.”
In a supermax deal, the Warriors can give him a five-year, roughly $221 million deal based on next year’s cap projections. The most Durant could get from the Knicks, Lakers or any other franchise would be $164 million over four years.
As Durant told The Athletic recently, money is on his mind.
“I am thinking about the money I’m going to get,” Durant told Marcus Thompson II. “I never got the (massive) deal. I’ve just seen a bunch of dudes around the league making so much money — and I’m happy for them. But I know I deserve that, too. That’s the only thing I’m probably thinking about, to be honest.”
While the Warriors and their fans may anguish thinking about the possibility of losing Durant, Griffin believes all the signs point toward a lasting relationship.
“I’m not saying he knows unequivocally he’s staying, but what are the factors that are going to force you to leave?” Griffin added. “If the factor that’s going to force you to leave is that you would rather be the big star on the big stage and you’re not happy flying with a guy who can get 51 (points) on 24 shots and win multiple championships ... well then, if you’re Golden State there’s nothing you can do about it. And you just have to move on from it, if that’s what happens.”