RW wants Sonics back in Seattle but now I'm not so sure...

[mikeak]

His suggestion was that the whole first round (8 matchups with minimum of 4 games per round and max 7 so 32-56 games) were replaced by a single elimination between 4 teams in each conference so 4 matchups so you are looking at 16-28 games less for the league as a whole.

And for every year a team would say yes because I am in the 7 or 8 spot you get another year where they are absolutely no because they have the spot below 8 so now those teams just diluted the lottery even more and then years they are in the playoffs they are now facing tougher competition because 7 and 8 aren't playing 1 and 2

 

[Hawk-Lock]

I actually think the product is on it's way back up. The 3 pointers are a problem, but it's all cyclical. 15-20 years ago, the game sucked because everybody was playing Knicks/Pacers basketball all the time and it was a bunch of grabby, physical, ugly basketball. They had to change the way it was officiated and open things up a little bit. Now it's gone the other way a bit much, but at least teams are starting to share the ball again. I've for the most part seen a bunch of guys playing pretty damn hard just about every night, except for those teams that sit guys. Not sure how you fix it either.

The biggest problem today is talent. The PG position totally dominates. It really wasn't long ago where you had Kobe, Vince, T-Mac, Bron, Marion, Ray, Roy, Wade, Pierce...a whole bunch of super talented wings that could flat fill it. Nowadays there's like 2. You've got Kawhi, , Durant, and the white dude from Utah and the rest of the scorer sare basically ball dominant PG's. The bigs are pretty worthless for the most part, but you've got guys like Davis and Townes who are possibly more talented than any bigs we have EVER seen.

It's not perfect, never really has been, but it's been pretty fun to watch and is on an upswing.

Great post. Completely agree with most everything you said. The game is much more fun to watch than it was 10-20 years ago. The big difference between then and now are three-pointers, more up-tempo basketball, and less post play.

 

[West TX Hawk]

Playoff time in the NBA is one of the most exciting times as a sports fan for me. I've found the last 6 or 7 years there's been seemingly more close games and exciting finishes than in years past.

I also enjoy tuning in to a regular season game now and then, whereas for college, I just never watch until March. Golden State's style and energy of play have made the game much more exciting than in the past. Other teams have begun emulating this run and gun, perimeter shooting technique and it's made the game better as a whole.

 

[dopeboy206]

Playoff time in the NBA is one of the most exciting times as a sports fan for me. I've found the last 6 or 7 years there's been seemingly more close games and exciting finishes than in years past.

I also enjoy tuning in to a regular season game now and then, whereas for college, I just never watch until March. Golden State's style and energy of play have made the game much more exciting than in the past. Other teams have begun emulating this run and gun, perimeter shooting technique and it's made the game better as a whole.

wish I could say the same but it's too predictable to me. We usually know who will make it to the finals every year between 2-3 teams.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Hawk-Lock]

The NBA is in a great spot. Last night SportsCenter basically said this has been the greatest season in terms of offense. I believe it said something along the lines of....

Most players averaging 20 points or more in one season
Most teams averaging at least 100 points in a game
Most triple doubles in an NBA season

There were more, I just can't remember. The NBA is all about superstars, that is how they market the game. Their are more superstars now then ever it seems like. Speaking of that, just saw this interesting article about baseball. Which is basically the opposite, no superstars.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1907 ... stars-gone

 

[Sgt. Largent]

Speaking of that, just saw this interesting article about baseball. Which is basically the opposite, no superstars.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1907 ... stars-gone

Not only does baseball have less superstars, but the one's they do have move around through free agency minimizing their impact on making the game exciting for markets.

I grew up in the 70's and 80's, and I didn't follow standings or wins, but I'd get excited when certain teams would come to Seattle because I knew 1-2 superstars were on that team, and they stayed on those teams for a decade or longer.

Also, the game is more foreign, with Latin Americans now making up for 30% of rosters. Nothing against Latin America, but less and less American stars makes it harder to market to American kids.

 

[mikeak]

Playoff time in the NBA is one of the most exciting times as a sports fan for me. I've found the last 6 or 7 years there's been seemingly more close games and exciting finishes than in years past.

I also enjoy tuning in to a regular season game now and then, whereas for college, I just never watch until March. Golden State's style and energy of play have made the game much more exciting than in the past. Other teams have begun emulating this run and gun, perimeter shooting technique and it's made the game better as a whole.

wish I could say the same but it's too predictable to me. We usually know who will make it to the finals every year between 2-3 teams.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

hmm the year after Oklahoma blew a 3-1 lead followed by GS blowing a 3-1 lead the outcome may be viewed as predictable because it did align with what was thought before the season but the path there surely wasn't predictable or give a feeling of predictability

Baseball will continue to suffer more and more. The viewing population is an aging population and the sport doesn't align at all with the younger generations "need" for action and pace

Basketball is much better aligned and doesn't become as big of a time commitment

 

[Hawk-Lock]

Speaking of that, just saw this interesting article about baseball. Which is basically the opposite, no superstars.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1907 ... stars-gone

Not only does baseball have less superstars, but the one's they do have move around through free agency minimizing their impact on making the game exciting for markets.

I grew up in the 70's and 80's, and I didn't follow standings or wins, but I'd get excited when certain teams would come to Seattle because I knew 1-2 superstars were on that team, and they stayed on those teams for a decade or longer.

Also, the game is more foreign, with Latin Americans now making up for 30% of rosters. Nothing against Latin America, but less and less American stars makes it harder to market to American kids.

I'm sure there are some marketing strategies MLB could use to highlight superstars more, but in the end, the sport itself doesn't really play to superstars. Baseball has always been about the sum of its parts. Add LeBron James to any NBA team and they automatically become a playoff team, and likely a title contender. Put Tom Brady on any NFL team and they become a playoff team. Add Mike Trout to any baseball team and they probably only win a few more games. In the NBA, a superstar can shoot the ball 15-20 more times than the next guy. In baseball game, the best player comes up to bat about as many times as the worst guy. Stars can't influence baseball in the same way that they can in the NFL and NBA. Also like you mentioned, it doesn't help that there is such a foreign influence on baseball right now.

 

[IndyHawk]

The NBA is in a great spot. Last night SportsCenter basically said this has been the greatest season in terms of offense. I believe it said something along the lines of....

Most players averaging 20 points or more in one season
Most teams averaging at least 100 points in a game
Most triple doubles in an NBA season

There were more, I just can't remember. The NBA is all about superstars, that is how they market the game. Their are more superstars now then ever it seems like. Speaking of that, just saw this interesting article about baseball. Which is basically the opposite, no superstars.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1907 ... stars-gone

To me those stats must mean it has to be one of worst defensive seasons ever as well.
I don't see all these superstars you refer to..I don't want to be a stick in the mud but the real superstars are James and four to five others depending on what you think one is.I think your making a lot of money betting on the NBA with no defense being played and 3's raining down to no end..Honestly the game has turned into trash ball for me.