It's all about the money.

My younger brother uses that line all of the time when talking about ... well, pretty much anything ... but he's always believed it was particularly prevalent when it came to pro sports.

Yeah, it's a business and I get all of that, but I always believed — naive as it might be — that pro athletes and owners had an insatiable desire to win.

I believe that no more.

Too many things are happening that prove otherwise.

The Pirates are not having a great season, obviously, but were still in the hunt for the NL Central Division title at the trade deadline. The team had money to spend, since they didn't pay Starling Marte for half the season, didn't pay Jung Ho Kang at all and freed up payroll money with the Francisco Liriano dump ... er, trade ... to Toronto last year.

Jay Bruce, Curtis Granderson, Neil Walker, etc., all there to be had. So what do the Pirates do? They dump Tony Watson's salary and pick up 40-year-old reliever Joaquin Benoit.

Oh, yeah, the Phillies have to pay the bulk of Benoit's salary.

Think Pirate owner Bob Nutting cares about winning? He added to the profit margin, not the won-loss record.

Sticking with Pittsburgh, how about Le'Veon Bell? The Steelers' all-world running back has decided not to come to camp until the preseason is over.

Yes, it's his right. No, he's not under contract. Still, he's going to be making $12 million this year once he signs his franchise tender.

The Steelers are a Super Bowl contender. Bell is a major piece of that. If the guy truly cared about winning, wouldn't he at least report to camp in time to get some hitting in, plus a little bit of game action?

Bell is probably in physical shape. He can't be in football shape. You can't be in football shape without playing football.

How disastrous would it be if an ineffective or unavailable Bell cost the Steelers that season opener in Cleveland? Just sayin'.

Let's slip over to Cleveland. Kyrie Irving got his wish and slipped out of Cleveland.

Wasn't it enough that he was part of a Cavaliers team that is entering this season as a title contender in the NBA? Don't players relish championship rings anymore?

Irving wants to be the man. That wasn't going to happen on a team that already has LeBron James. Now Irving will be the man in Bostyon.

The Celtics aren't a title contender, but being the man may mean more money for Kyrie.

If you have the money, like the Los Angeles Dodgers, I guess you can spend it. There's a team that's “going for it.” They showed that at the deadline and beyond.

But for the most part, money rules the game in pro sports.

Hello, high school football.

It's so good to see you.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle