Regardless of your level of interest, the sports world offers a daily line of compelling storylines evoking the entire range of human thought. Many sports stories have a deeper substance that’s relatable across all industries and representative of greater life principles.

The Los Angeles Lakers are on the verge of losing one of the NBA’s biggest stars – the centerpiece of their future – to free agency. Just a year after his circus show of leaving Orlando that ultimately landed him in L.A., Dwight Howard, the sports embodiment of everything we love and hate about Hollywood, seems pretty intent (or at least interested) in leaving Los Angeles.

As Howard mulls intense courtship from several teams, the Lakers hope their series of billboards begging the star simply to “STAY” (with the rallying cry hashtag #STAYD12”) will help put them on the winning end of the sweepstakes. The signs portray a strong sense of desperation that’s questionable coming from a franchise that has won 16 world championships and been home to at least a dozen of the greatest players in NBA history. A lot of sportscasters, writers and fans have outwardly ridiculed the Lakers for begging, and rightfully so. But there are a few elements and principles behind the “STAY” billboards to like.

caption id="attachment_11265" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Photo credit: Michael Owen Baker/L.A. Daily News"/caption

Here are three reasons to appreciate the Lakers’ billboards begging Dwight Howard to stay no matter how you feel or how little you care about the topic:

– Simplicity – From both marketing and design standpoints, the billboards are simple and memorable. The politics behind the situation are complicated to say the least, but at the end of the day, what the Lakers want Dwight Howard to do is simple – “STAY.” The art to relay that message is basic in an effective way, forfeiting flashy graphics for a bold, can’t-miss visual statement.

– Honesty – Going back to aforementioned politics, it’s nice to see such a powerful organization unmask its poker face and publicly put itself in a vulnerable position. Again, it’s also a great way to get made fun of and possibly embarrassed, especially in the entertainment capital of the world, but still pretty cool. You usually don’t see proud, iconic sports franchises like the Los Angeles Lakers throw their pride aside in this type of situation.

- Loyalty – We can all agree that it’s pretty tough to maintain loyalty when it’s one-sided. If nothing else, The Los Angeles Lakers definitively expressing their belief in Dwight Howard while he just doesn’t seem that into them is praiseworthy. It also puts public pressure on him to return that loyalty.

So while the Los Angeles Lakers take a media beating for acting like a contestant on The Bachelor, take a second to appreciate them for proposing three things we all want in life – Simplicity, Honest and Loyalty.

caption id="attachment_11266" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Photo via Twitter"/caption

caption id="attachment_11267" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Los Angeles Lakers - Dwight Howard "STAY" artwork."/caption