Fan of the NBA? Why or Why Not?

[HD MM]

I have come across some pretty strong opinions of whether or not some folks are fans of the NBA or not. My question to you is simple. Why are you a fan and if not, why?

I heard on a Sirius Radio program this afternoon that this year's NBA Playoffs ratings on TNT are up by over 18% from last year. The playoffs on ESPN are up by over 10% from last year. The viewership is definitely there. The excitement is too.

The NBA doesn't have the issues with steroids like the MLB has. The NBA's salary cap works and the rookie pay-scale makes sense, unlike the NFL's. Next to the NFL, the NBA is the most watched sport of the Big-3. The fan interest is the most international. The NBA is full of young talented star power. Most of them are on competitive teams. The 4 teams left in the Conference Finals feature 4 of the 5 starters from this past year's Team USA Basketball Team, aka the "Redeem Team."

Right now, we're in the midst of an epic playoff season. The first round match-up between the Bulls and Celtics was one for the ages. The Houston/Rockets Conference Semi-Finals was intense, so was the Magic/Celtics 7 game Semi-Final. The Conference Finals by the 4 teams left have also been mesmerizing.

We've been treated with great games, great plays, buzzer beaters and a few upsets. The drama is there. One particular poster here called Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals "one of the best games ever."

If you're not a fan, why? If you are a fan, please elaborate on why you are and why the others who aren't should give it a try.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

I have come across some pretty strong opinions of whether or not some folks are fans of the NBA or not. My question to you is simple. Why are you a fan and if not, why?

I heard on a Sirius Radio program this afternoon that this year's NBA Playoffs ratings on TNT are up by over 18% from last year. The playoffs on ESPN are up by over 10% from last year. The viewership is definitely there. The excitement is too.

The NBA doesn't have the issues with steroids like the MLB has. The NBA's salary cap works and the rookie pay-scale makes sense, unlike the NFL's. Next to the NFL, the NBA is the most watched sport of the Big-3. The fan interest is the most international. The NBA is full of young talented star power. Most of them are on competitive teams. The 4 teams left in the Conference Finals feature 4 of the 5 starters from this past year's Team USA Basketball Team, aka the "Redeem Team."

Right now, we're in the midst of an epic playoff season. The first round match-up between the Bulls and Celtics was one for the ages. The Houston/Rockets Conference Semi-Finals was intense, so was the Magic/Celtics 7 game Semi-Final. The Conference Finals by the 4 teams left have also been mesmerizing.

We've been treated with great games, great plays, buzzer beaters and a few upsets. The drama is there. One particular poster here called Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals "one of the best games ever."

If you're not a fan, why? If you are a fan, please elaborate on why you are and why the others who aren't should give it a try.

Despite all of that, I would rather watch NCAA BB. The NBA isn't worth watching until the playoffs start. Until then they just go through the motions until the last quarter. In college they play hard every possession, and extra hard in the tournament. Just the way it seems to me. BTW, I used to have season tickets for the Pistons for 8 seasons.

 

[anders5189]

I'm not a big fan of the NBA although I'll say that the talent of the players is incredible and I have been entertained by many of these playoff games.

I like college basketball better because it's easier to follow the entire season than in the NBA. Sure the NBA playoff games are all nationally televised but unless you have League Pass and lots of free time it's too hard to follow the regular season. Another thing I don't like about the NBA is the refs ruin too many games. They call fouls on every play, they T up players and coaches for nothing, etc. I can't stand that. I also don't like the strategy most NBA teams use. Nearly everyone just runs the pick and roll on every play and virtually no one knows how to defend it. In college you see all sorts of styles. Some teams play fast, some play slow, some play man to man, some play zone. You even get to see full court pressure defense. You never get that in the NBA because teams just call timeout and advance the ball to the frontcourt. That's like automatically advancing a runner to 3rd base.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

I'm not a big fan of the NBA although I'll say that the talent of the players is incredible and I have been entertained by many of these playoff games.

I like college basketball better because it's easier to follow the entire season than in the NBA. Sure the NBA playoff games are all nationally televised but unless you have League Pass and lots of free time it's too hard to follow the regular season. Another thing I don't like about the NBA is the refs ruin too many games. They call fouls on every play, they T up players and coaches for nothing, etc. I can't stand that. I also don't like the strategy most NBA teams use. Nearly everyone just runs the pick and roll on every play and virtually no one knows how to defend it. In college you see all sorts of styles. Some teams play fast, some play slow, some play man to man, some play zone. You even get to see full court pressure defense. You never get that in the NBA because teams just call timeout and advance the ball to the frontcourt. That's like automatically advancing a runner to 3rd base.

There's some more reasons. What he said!

 

[cybok0]

I would rather watch NCAA BB. The NBA isn't worth watching until the playoffs start. Until then they just go through the motions until the last quarter. In college they play hard every possession, and extra hard in the tournament.

I'm not a big fan of the NBA although I'll say that the talent of the players is incredible and I have been entertained by many of these playoff games.

I like college basketball better because it's easier to follow the entire season than in the NBA. Sure the NBA playoff games are all nationally televised but unless you have League Pass and lots of free time it's too hard to follow the regular season. Another thing I don't like about the NBA is the refs ruin too many games. They call fouls on every play, they T up players and coaches for nothing, etc. I can't stand that. I also don't like the strategy most NBA teams use. Nearly everyone just runs the pick and roll on every play and virtually no one knows how to defend it. In college you see all sorts of styles. Some teams play fast, some play slow, some play man to man, some play zone. You even get to see full court pressure defense. You never get that in the NBA because teams just call timeout and advance the ball to the frontcourt. That's like automatically advancing a runner to 3rd base.

:up:up:up:up:up

Plus Pittsburgh doesn't have a pro NBA team.

 

[KCK_Halo]

NOT! Too many thugs.

 

[salsadancer7]

NOT! Too many thugs.

Why do you say that? I am curious.. Do you say the same about college basketball? Or the NFL?

 

[HD MM]

NOT! Too many thugs.

Oh boy. Here we go....

I appreciate your opinion, but please explain.

 

[salsadancer7]

Oh boy. Here we go....

I appreciate your opinion, but please explain.

I am looking forward to it myself.....

 

[SandraC]

You even get to see full court pressure defense. You never get that in the NBA because teams just call timeout and advance the ball to the frontcourt. That's like automatically advancing a runner to 3rd base.

Wrong.

If you're being pressed in the NBA you can't automatically call time out to advance the ball. You can only advance the ball if you make no attempt to pass/dribble the ball up the court in the first place.

If this were a true strategy teams would press until the other team was forced to use all of it's time outs. The reason teams don't press is because NBA guards are too quick. It would most times be futile, even though the NBA uses an 8 second clock to get to midcourt as opposed to the 10 seconds every other male league uses.

You don't see many guards in college who can automatically break a press. In the NBA every team has more than one.


Sandra

 

[SandraC]

NOT! Too many thugs.

Wow. What a statement.

Either you're kidding and forgot the wink icon, or you hate every sport.


Sandra

 

[Rey]

The NBA doesn't have the issues with steroids like the MLB has. The NBA's salary cap works and the rookie pay-scale makes sense, unlike the NFL's. Next to the NFL, the NBA is the most watched sport of the Big-3. The fan interest is the most international. The NBA is full of young talented star power. Most of them are on competitive teams. The 4 teams left in the Conference Finals feature 4 of the 5 starters from this past year's Team USA Basketball Team, aka the "Redeem Team."

Right now, we're in the midst of an epic playoff season. The first round match-up between the Bulls and Celtics was one for the ages. The Houston/Rockets Conference Semi-Finals was intense, so was the Magic/Celtics 7 game Semi-Final. The Conference Finals by the 4 teams left have also been mesmerizing.

We've been treated with great games, great plays, buzzer beaters and a few upsets. The drama is there. One particular poster here called Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals "one of the best games ever."

This pretty much sums it up for me. :up while the NFL is my favorite sport the NBA is not that far behind it for me. as Matt already mentioned the salary cap system in the NBA works. what the NFL is doing for the past few years stinks and it's getting out of hand with these rookies.

there is a bit more excitement in the NBA. it's a game of momentum so usually you're never really sure who's going to win until the very end. very exciting. i love being on the edge of my toes or sofa

the NBA playoffs are extremely satisfying. the playoffs in the NFL leave me wanting for more. maybe that's not a bad thing but the NBA quenches my thirst

besides the bad officiating which is terrible, this NBA playoff season has been one of the best from the last few seasons. like HDMM said, that CHIvsBOS series was great and one of the best 1st round series ever seen. the MAGvsBOS series was very good too! what's going on out west with DENvsLA is good too. i've really enjoyed this season so far.

the only thing i'm not a fan of this season is of the officials. bad calls all around.

 

[Rey]

NOT! Too many thugs.

why? i'm not saying there aren't any thugs in the NBA or in any other sport but to say too many is too much IMO no?

 

[HD MM]

I'm not a big fan of the NBA although I'll say that the talent of the players is incredible and I have been entertained by many of these playoff games.

I like college basketball better because it's easier to follow the entire season than in the NBA. Sure the NBA playoff games are all nationally televised but unless you have League Pass and lots of free time it's too hard to follow the regular season. Another thing I don't like about the NBA is the refs ruin too many games. They call fouls on every play, they T up players and coaches for nothing, etc. I can't stand that. I also don't like the strategy most NBA teams use. Nearly everyone just runs the pick and roll on every play and virtually no one knows how to defend it. In college you see all sorts of styles. Some teams play fast, some play slow, some play man to man, some play zone. You even get to see full court pressure defense. You never get that in the NBA because teams just call timeout and advance the ball to the frontcourt. That's like automatically advancing a runner to 3rd base.

Some of the gimmicky offenses run in college don't work in the NBA for the same reasons gimmicky offenses in college football don't work in the NFL. Better defense led by bigger, faster, stronger players who take away some of those aspects.

As for zones and faster play. That does exist in the NBA. Watch the Phoenix Suns sometime. Typically this style is used by offensive crazy teams who prefer to win games by a score of 125-115. It isn't a wildly popular style because playing this style effects your defense. Successful teams in the NBA tend to prefer a well balanced attack.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

NOT! Too many thugs.

Didn't most of those "thugs" play in the NCAA also?

 

[DodgerKing]

I used to be a big NBA fan. In fact, I used to like the Lakers in the 80's when they had Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Green, Cooper, ex. I have since fallen out of favor with the NBA and despise the Lakers. It seems that NBA has lost the team play and fundamentals. But that is not the reason why I no longer have an interest. I think it simply has to do with the fact that it doesn't entertain me anymore. It just seems like the game is repetitive with so much back and forth, and is very monotonous. What is the point of watching the first 3 quarters?

To say one likes or dislikes a sports because of their opinion of another sport makes no sense too me. One either likes the NBA or they don't. It should have nothing to do with the NFL or MLB. Comparing the sports and using other sports to explain why one likes one better than the others is OK.

 

[Ramy]

I like basketball. Plain and simple answer.

 

[anders5189]

Wrong.

If you're being pressed in the NBA you can't automatically call time out to advance the ball. You can only advance the ball if you make no attempt to pass/dribble the ball up the court in the first place.

If this were a true strategy teams would press until the other team was forced to use all of it's time outs. The reason teams don't press is because NBA guards are too quick. It would most times be futile, even though the NBA uses an 8 second clock to get to midcourt as opposed to the 10 seconds every other male league uses.

You don't see many guards in college who can automatically break a press. In the NBA every team has more than one.


Sandra

The quickness of NBA guards should be offset by the length of NBA players who can dart into a passing lane and create a turnover. Besides with only 8 seconds allowed to get the ball into the frontcourt teams wouldn't be able to hesitate too much. I love how in college when a team is down in the last couple of minutes they can press and turn the game around. In the last 2 minutes in the NBA teams automatically call timeout and move the ball to the frontcourt. Lame.

 

[DodgerKing]

This pretty much sums it up for me. :up while the NFL is my favorite sport the NBA is not that far behind it for me. as Matt already mentioned the salary cap system in the NBA works. what the NFL is doing for the past few years stinks and it's getting out of hand with these rookies.

there is a bit more excitement in the NBA. it's a game of momentum so usually you're never really sure who's going to win until the very end. very exciting. i love being on the edge of my toes or sofa

the NBA playoffs are extremely satisfying. the playoffs in the NFL leave me wanting for more. maybe that's not a bad thing but the NBA quenches my thirst

besides the bad officiating which is terrible, this NBA playoff season has been one of the best from the last few seasons. like HDMM said, that CHIvsBOS series was great and one of the best 1st round series ever seen. the MAGvsBOS series was very good too! what's going on out west with DENvsLA is good too. i've really enjoyed this season so far.

the only thing i'm not a fan of this season is of the officials. bad calls all around.

Even though there is more dead time in the NFL, I think the NFL is much more exciting. Because of the fact that, like baseball, it can go from a dead moment of nothing happen to a sudden outburst of excitement. The NBA too me is too monotonous. It is just back and forth of the same thing over and over for the whole game. There is so much scoring that each point does not seem all that exciting. Whereas in the NFL, each TD or FG seems to have more importance on the outcome (since it does not happen as often) and the effort to score those fewer points involves so much more effort. It is that effort and drive that makes the game more exciting, IMO.

 

[Ira Lacher]

The playoffs are generally very satisfying, once you get into the later rounds. But the regular season is just too long, and with 16 teams making the playoffs, contains too many meaningless games. Because the travel is hard and the games are so physical, you can tell the players don't put out 100 percent every minute. Who can blame them? But it does make for some boring basketball. Not to mention that despite some of the rules changes, it's still a one-one-one game.

When you have a megastar like Kobe Bryant or LeBron James take charge of a playoff contest, though, it's great theater. That's why I'm hoping the Cavs and Lakers can pull out their series. I shudder (along with ABC and the NBA, I'm sure) at the prospect of an Orlando-Denver Final.