What's happened to the NBA? Does anyone watch anymore? Does anyone care anymore? Ever since Michael Jordan retired for the last time, the NBA has been in a constant struggle to find that one player to bring back the glory days of the National Basketball Association. They thought they found that player in Kobe Bryant, but one infamous night in Colorado followed by an insincere apology ruined that. The NBA has some great individual talent, but there is only one real team in the entire league. That would be the Boston Celtics. And that would be the reason they won the championship last season and are an early favorite to win the title again. And as far the current NBA is concerned, the Celtics are an anomaly beyond their desire to play as a team. They are thriving in Boston, historically known as a "baseball town." And the Patriots happen to play their football in that city, as well. This is the biggest problem with the NBA right now. I watch ESPN every day. I listen to ESPN Radio in my car. It wouldn't be a stretch for me to change my initials to K.T.E.S.P.N. This morning, as I watched ESPN, I was forced to sit thru the highlights of the NBA games from last night, a night in which every team in the NBA played, the first time in league history that all teams played on the same night. As I watched the highlights this morning, something glaringly obvious kept shouting at me: Where are the fans?? Aside from just a handful of games, you could see (just from the highlights) that there were more empty seats than filled ones. And then it hit me: the NBA only thrives in cities where the NBA team is the lone pro franchise. I'm not going to go through the entire league (that would take too long), but here are a few examples...
--Dallas Mavericks? Sorry, you're playing in the Cowboys' city.
--Minnesota Timberwolves? Sorry, that's Viking territory.
--Chicago Bulls? They once owned the city, but now Chicago is split between the Cubs and the Bears.
--Denver Nuggets? Even without Elway, the Broncos still own the mile-high city.
--Toronto Raptors? People who live in Toronto don't even know they have an NBA team. The Maple Leafs would still own that city even if they didn't win a single game.
--Indiana Pacers? Not even close. That city only cares about the Colts.
--Atlanta Hawks? Atlanta is a horrible sports city to begin with, but if they love any team, it's the Falcons.
--Washington Wizards? Please... Jordan couldn't even help them get butts in the seats. The Redskins have a firm grip on our nation's capital.
Only a few franchises hold their own in their respective cities. Los Angeles is a Lakers town, no question. New Orleans loves their Hornets, and San Antonio routinely fills out the HemisFair Arena for the Spurs. And thanks to LeBron James, Cleveland now gives more support to the Cavaliers than the Browns. Think about this... if attendance in the NBA is as low as I believe it to be, maybe the NBA should condense its league. There's an idea! Cut the league down to 20-24 teams, get rid of the players who don't belong anyway, and then let's play some basketball. And I have my own opinion of why the NBA's popularity is failing: there are no fundamentals in the game anymore. If you can't dunk the ball every single time you touch it, you will not have a place in the 2009 version of the NBA. Magic Johnson would not be as popular today as he was in the early 90's. He was a pass-first, mid-range shooter, and a damn good one at that. But that style of player is overlooked today. I still wish with all my heart that a group of high school referees could officiate an NBA game just once. That would be amazing! Even with the shot clock in place, the final score with any two teams playing would be 47-38. The referees would have chapped lips from blowing the whistle so many times. And that's exactly my point. That's one reason why I'm glad to see the NBA promoting Hornets guard Chris Paul so well. He is a star talent and has great fundamentals. He's also a clean-cut guy who doesn't get into any trouble. That's a breath of fresh air in a league that's had Dennis Rodman, Latrell Sprewell, Rasheed Wallace and Ron Artest. I got the chance to see Jordan play in Chicago, and the only seats available were in the upper deck. That's the way I want to remember the NBA. Cause right now, it ranks third in popularity in this country, a distant third behind football and baseball.
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I agree for the most part. I was a huge basketball fan and I guess I still am. I've often said I wish I could just pull up the 90's on Tivo and rewatch the decade. But this season I have gotten a little more interested in the league again. A big pull for are guys like Chris Paul, Dwade, Lebron, KG and the whole celtics team. I'm totally rooting for the Cavs, Lebron has got insane talent and he pushes that team up a level or 2. I mean Anderson VArejo, I think when he tried pulling that circus crap i nthe finals a couple years ago I actually said I won't watch anymore. The teams are few and far between but the HOrnets, Cavs, Celtics, even the Lakers are pretty good teams. Oh and I forgot about that freak Dwight Howard and the Magic. Stan VanGundy looks to be a pretty damn good coach. First time I've read your blog and I like it. keep up the good work.
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