NBA fans sound off
From the Page 2 mailbag
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NBA fans sound off From the Page 2 mailbag | ||||
From Karl Malone to Charles Oakley, it seems everyone is bashing the NBA these days. So, Page 2 asked what you, the fans, think of the world of pro hoops.
Here is a sampling of the thousands of responses we received last week:
Ryan Leamy New York Passing is a lost art in the NBA. Yes, John Stockton and other younger assist artists are around, but I mean team passing. You see fancy no-look passes setting up dunks or nice dishes on the all too infrequent fast breaks, but the two-pass play is almost nonexistent. The league is so boringly defensive-minded with coaches shouting out plays and instructions to players (prime offender Rick Pitino) that there's no flow to the game.The product is crap aesthetically. James Tetreault North Grafton, Mass. The NBA is a snoozer right now. ... If I want to watch a game that finishes 85-81, I'd watch a women's college game and be more entertained. The NBA should dig up its rule book from the early- or mid-1980s (you know, when 105-102 games were more the norm) and let the league run by those rules. Defense is not what people go to watch. Defense is what people put around "de backyard" to keep the neighbors out. Granted, I'd like to see a great steal or a blocked shot into the 12th row as much as the next guy, but these players are professional scorers, so let them show their wares. Let more things go. The officials should swallow their whistles from time to time, let the game develop a rhythm on its own. Calling handchecks is crazy! And do something about the illegal-defense rule -- no one understands it, so why should it be in the rule book? David Woodburn Flagstaff, Ariz. Free agency, coupled with multiplayer salary-cap maneuvering trades, is killing the NBA. How can a fan know all of their team's players' names and career statistics when half the players change every year? It is just not worth the trouble to keep up with, let alone get emotionally attached to a group of players anymore. Kevin Osborn Jonesboro, Ark. The 3-point shot has seriously hurt the NBA. This is the only real difference between 1990s basketball and the golden era -- the '80s. Eighties players had the 3-point shot, but didn't "grow up" with the 3-point shot. Thus they developed a middle-range game. Modern players all grew up fascinated with the long-range trey, and it is hurting the middle game. Those players who are effective all have game from 12 to 18 feet. Look at what happened when they reduced the 3-point shot range -- scoring got worse overall. The 3-point shot should be moved back -- and the overall court enlarged if necessary -- such that people will be forced to develop the mid-range game. Ideally, if you could eliminate the 3 on the high school level, it would also be helpful. I guarantee that if the 3 is moved back, 2 feet or so, then overall scoring and offense in the league will go up. Stuart Wexler East Windsor, N.J. I can't remember the last time I saw highlights of an NBA game that consisted of anything except for 3-pointers and dunks. The mid-range jumpshot is dead because nobody is going to get any media coverage shooting 15-foot jumpers. The same people who criticize the NBA are largely responsible for the sloppy play we see now. Steve Ward Round Rock, Texas I am a huge NBA fan and have followed the Portland Trail Blazers since their first season. I think the main problem with basketball today is that there are just too many regular-season games. Too many meaningless matchups. Cut the season by 20 games and get on with the playoffs. Who wants to watch the Clippers play the Celtics anyway? Bill Coon Kent, Wash. The only thing wrong with the NBA right now is the lack of a charismatic all-around player and all-around good guy (i.e. Michael Jordan) who has the ability to bring part-time and non-NBA fans to arenas and to television sets. True fans of the game and fans of the NBA will always watch and always go to games because the game is still the same. The players are different and they play the game differently, but in the end it comes down to the game itself and personally, I love this game and no amount of dreadlocks, tattoos and bad rap albums by players will ever change that. Troy Conway Milwaukee The biggest problem the NBA has is the negative pub it gets from the mostly white middle-aged media. I think this stems primarily from a generational/cultural gap. These writers keep romanticizing about the way it used to be while continually pointing out the shortcomings of today's players -- most of which have to do with their off-the-court demeanor. Mike Freed Atlanta The NBA is a collection of prima donna thugs who have diseased a once elite professional sport. These guys belong in the circus, not the hard-floor. With tattoos, funky hair and the hunger for more money, the NBA is a collection of degenerates. Growing up with Dr. J, Jordan, Magic, Bird, Isiah and company, you felt as if you could respect them as individuals beyond their superiority of professional athletes. What took them two decades to create has been destroyed in two years! I won't be watching the NBA as long as the Blue Jackets are in town! Aaron Ashba Columbus, Ohio As a fan for 15 of my 25 years, I have never been less interested or more dismayed by the state of the game than I am now. Malone, Oakley, Jordan, Barkley and the rest of the "old guard" are 100 percent on the money when they speak out about the new breed of players who play for love of money instead of love of game. The mercenary quality that agent David Falk has brought to the game is sad. Above all, though, David Stern appears to me as the mad scientist. He intended to build something he loved to new heights but somewhere along the line, the game got too big too fast and there's no turning back. The players don't care about the fans, the agents don't care about the teams or the owners, and the fans, for the most part, are falling out of love with a game that has multi-million dollar teenagers dunking, scowling, and cursing everyone in sight because they need to "keep it real." It's too bad, I say, because basketball (in general, not the NBA) is a true art. Maurice Recanati New York The problem with today's NBA is neither the level of play nor its image, but rather a problem of marketing. With the NBA stripping college basketball of its best players (and don't believe for a second that the NBA isn't responsible or has no control over early entries) before they make a name for themselves in the NCAA, the fans know very little about who these guys are. Sooner or later, the NBA will have to admit that, talent aside, fans are more likely to recognize names like Christian Laettner and Calbert Cheaney than Larry Hughes and Darius Miles. Harry Manhattan Beach Calif. It's not the tattoos, it's not the piercings, it's not even the poor play (being a T-Wolves fan since 1989, I have a great deal of experience in that). The reason that I will never pay $75 to see a game is the attitudes of today's players. Today's players have the attitudes that we the audience owe them something. This attitude was borne during the lockout and has alienated fans from all over the country. This immature attitude is just one of the setbacks from having the age of the average player under 25. Matt Minneapolis What's wrong with the NBA is this: While the salary cap keeps the NFL in line, it has changed the NBA's on-court product. I'm not saying that a cap is not necessary, just that it did nothing to curb players' salaries. It only reduced the number of good players a team can have. You've got guys who take up more than 25 percent of a team's cap and thus are expected to provide as much offense. That promotes one-on-one street basketball that has its moments, but leads to poor team play and even poorer defense. So the on-court product is less appealing overall. Sure people will pay to see Kobe or Vince, but as far as good teams go, they're nonexistent. Oh where have you gone Bird/Parrish/McHale or Thomas/Dumars/Lambeer? Joe Atlanta 1. The NBA has over-expanded. There are not enough quality players to fill out the starting lineups of every team in the league. 2. Related to No. 1. The high school kids have lowered the skill level of the NBA. Yes they are young, can run and jump, but their fundamentals are woefully inadequate. When you are 6 feet, 9 inches tall in high school, you don't need great skills to be a star. However, when you play against someone of equal athletic talent, fundamental skills are what set apart winners from losers. 3. The structure of the game needs to be changed. The court needs to be widened, the key needs to be reshaped into a trapezoid a la international basketball, and the NBA needs to adopt the ABA's no-foul out rule. Also, when a player with six fouls commits another foul, the opposing team gets two shots and the ball. KJ Cole Prattville, Ala. No disrespect to Mike, but I kind of like the fact that I don't know in November who is going to win the championship in June! Dan Kozin San Francisco There's nothing wrong with the game itself. The ratings are bad on nationally televised games and the merchandise isn't selling solely because of the teams that are selected to play on nationally televised games. I'm sick of watching the Heat vs. the Knicks every Sunday. It's become a joke to myself and my friends, who are all NBA fans. The NBC game of the week usually stinks. Let's see more of Kevin Garnett and the Wolves, Chris Webber and the Kings, Allen Iverson and the Sixers, and Vince Carter and the Raptors. And why not show teams that aren't as good on national television? There are people out there who don't get to see Andre Miller come close to getting a triple-double. There are people who don't get to see Lamar Odom take over an offense and terrorize on defense. There are people who don't realize what a special player Paul Pierce is and how fun Antoine Walker can be to watch. Heck, there are people out there who have never even heard Shareef Abdur-Rahim's name, despite the fact that he has averaged around 20 points and 10 rebounds over his career. Give the people a chance to see the whole league, not just the same boring teams over and over again. I don't know how many more times I can watch the Heat and Knicks battle it out to a 73-68 overtime finish. Justin Varricchione Boston I think the NBA is unique. When a player never records a triple-double in his career and has back-to-back ones; a la Aaron McKie in two nice wins, something is up. It is nice to finally see different players stepping up in the league. A prime example is the Mavs and the Clips. Look at their respective squads. They are going to give the league something they need, a young and energetic change. Scott Carlson Philadelphia The NBA, like everything else, is changing. Will it be better or worse? Only time will tell. I personally love the game. I remember watching Magic and Bird go at each other. I remember watching Jordan dominate. But frankly, it's more entertaining not knowing who'll win the championship before the season starts. There are still responsible stars, great players and fantastic coaches. But, there are also inflated ticket prices, overpaid slackers and bumbling league leadership. I guess the old saying applies, love it or leave it. Either way, I'm sure the NBA will survive. Phillip Birmingham, Ala. The NBA, like all other artifacts of popular culture, does nothing more than reflect and magnify the society that has created it. If people are seeing that the NBA (like popular music, film, television, etc.) is diseased, then this is just another symptom of our diseased society. It's all style over substance these days and that is not just something infecting the NBA, nor is it something entirely new. Devin Rice Cleveland If the league is suffering today because of the retirement of Michael Jordan, it can blame no one but itself. The NBA and its bedmate, television, created the Jordan Rules, the ludicrous special treatment of one player. They deserve the negative consequences of unfairly tilting the playing field. They sacrificed integrity for popularity and corporate money, and the time has simply come for this hype factory to turn its attention away from babying its players and sponsors and toward courting America's true basketball fans, who are far more numerous than the trendy elite who fill the luxury suites. J. Garlan Miller Kensington, Md. I think the league's older guns and the fair-weather fans and media are blaming the wrong people. Don't blame the players. When Darius Miles was 13, do you think his AAU coach made him work on the 12-foot jumper or let him run around dunking on poor little Timmy? Kobe and Garnett were ready, but most of these kids aren't. No one stresses to them that it's important to learn the fundamentals. As long as they can crossover dribble, dunk or shoot the 3, who the hell cares about passing, defense or rebounding? So, next time you complain about the league, start by blaming the AAU and high school coaches and the blood-sucking agents that prowl around the playgrounds and gyms. Jermal Quinn Norfolk, Va. The NBA is a joke. It's a garbage league's garbage league. Until they enforce the rules (three seconds, carrying, and most importantly traveling) the league will remain a joke. No one wants to see a bunch of overpaid brats play a game that has rules, or lack thereof, that exist nowhere else on Earth. Someone travels on every other possession! Gimme college, the heart, the love, the passion, every time over the pro game. Derek Zona Pittsburgh
Michael Nye Boston The NBA is much better now than ever. Sure, I miss Michael, but now there is a debate over what is the best team in the league. Now you can watch more than just the Bulls to see an amazing play. With Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Kevin Garnett and others, the game has athletes like never before. People complain about losing fundamentals but ask yourself which you would choose: a 360-degree slam dunk or a 20-foot bank shot? Marcus Paschall Marion, Ind. I wouldn't go watch those overpaid, arrogant, tattooed criminals if tickets were free! The NBA will be the first pro sport to fold, thank God! Larry Laird Marion, Ohio I watch the NBA on TV all the time, just because I like the game of basketball. And, I am very lucky to support a team that epitomizes the team play and sportsmanship of the late 1980s -- the San Antonio Spurs. What separates the Spurs from other teams is their unselfishness and team emphasis. They are not concerned with self-promotion or SportsCenter highlights. They are mature individuals who want to win first and foremost. Justin Wittsche Carrollton, Texas The game is as tight as it has ever been. How many triple-doubles have we seen this year already? How many 40-point games? 50-point games? As a fan, I was turned off by the level of competition during the Jordan years. I mean, there was really no point in watching the regular season when MJ was around. There was no question that the Bulls would take the title. That soured me to an extent. Right now, the teams are all fairly even (especially in the West). The weeknight games on TNT/TBS actually captivate me. However, I do have a simple solution: More inexpensive tix! Not the nosebleeds mind you, but seats! Good seats. People will fill 'em. Justin Davis Iowa I don't think that the NBA is even really basketball anymore. It is glorified one-on-one where the better athlete is going to win nine times out of 10. There really isn't much strategy anymore. Most of the guys that are in the league wouldn't be able to do anything against a zone defense. I would much rather watch a team like Temple drive an athletic team like Cincinnati or Tennessee nuts with that brutal match-up zone. The athletes in the NBA are incredible, but how many of them are actually basketball players? Mike Sullivan Sioux Falls, S.D. |
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