Recently, Jimmy Butler, a player in the NBA for the Minnesota Timberwolves got into a spat in practice. During the shouting match, he yelled at everyone. Coaches, fellow players, and even the owner got a piece of the tongue lashing. The source of the outburst was Butler’s frustration over a contract dispute with the team.

Afterward, Butler admitted it might not have been the right way to handle things. But, he said, “it happened because of his passion to play ball and he hadn’t played in a long time.” Now, per ESPN, the team and Butler are close to making a deal.

I find the situation interesting. While this type of situation frequently occurs in sports, it isn’t limited there. Many businesses have teammates like Butler. They could be individuals who have been around a long time with a lot of institutional knowledge. Or, they could be high performers in their area who have a significant impact on the bottom line.

The problem occurs when the individual feels they are bigger than the organization. When this happens, they begin to demand special treatment and the normal rules don’t apply to them. At this point, they begin to hold the threat of leaving over everyone’s head. With the threat, everyone caves to their demands out of the fear of losing such a “valuable” player.

As time goes on their behavior worsens and team morale plummets. Everyone walks on eggshells and grumbles beneath their breath about the special treatment. It is at this point management often stumbles and capitulates to the demands out of fear. Often the fear of losing the key player outweighs the discord they cause. This fear paralyzes management and the organization begins a slow downward spiral.

There are many ingredients to creating successful, high-performing teams. One of the first ingredients of any successful team is creating an environment of trust. Teammates who can trust each other and management will develop an atmosphere of success. Trust is a fragile thing and when people are forced to walk on eggshells, there will be no trust.

Another ingredient to success is commitment. All successful teams are looking for the commitment to something bigger than themselves, rather than to the individual. Great teams are made up of capable individuals, each doing their part. Each person pulls their weight and everyone works toward the shared goal. The goal is something everyone has ownership of and is willing to sacrifice for.

The final key ingredient is leadership. Teams with leaders who make tough decisions and do hard things will perform above expectations. These teams perform well because they operate in an environment of trust. Additionally, each member feels valued for their contributions. Special treatment for “superstars” erodes confidence in leadership and lessens others contributions.

A great man once said that sometimes you must sacrifice the one to save many. If someone has cancer, they will seek treatment to have cancer removed. Yet, in the workplace, the cancer is often left alone to fester and grow.

There is no denying that losing institutional knowledge or a top performer hurts. Yet, you should consider which pain you would rather live with. Would you rather have the pain of a toxic work environment or the pain of a temporary dip in sales/productivity?

As if often the case, organizations that choose to remove the cancer are better off in the long run than those who don’t. Employee morale improves and someone steps up to fill the void. Life is too short to live with the threat of someone leaving. Call their bluff and let them go, because as Annie says “the sun will come up tomorrow!”

Jeff Hough is a business author, blogger and speaker in Pocatello.