In part 1 of my article, I shed light on the inner workings of the NBA and the few good things they have going for them. Many may wonder why only a few things were listed as being “good,” and the reason is: I only see very little about the league that I used to love.
For instance, whatever happened to player introductions for nationally televised games? Now, if you’re watching from the comfort of your own home, the players’ pictures do appear on-screen along with their positions and averages for the season, but it is because of this that so many of the young players and fans don’t have a sense of history regarding the game of basketball. This is also why the game has been watered-down to the ridiculous product we often witness on television from time to time. Tactics and measures have been taken to accelerate the game and generate higher point values, but why?
During the glory days of the 80’s and 90’s, gimmicks weren’t needed to accomplish these feats. Players like Magic, Bird, Jordan, Pippen, Barkley, Ewing, Stockton and Malone, Isiah Thomas, George Gervin, Adrian Dantley, Mark Aguirre and many more, simply laced up their high-tops and played the game without any help from the league office. Now, the league has instituted the no-hand-checking rule, has allowed zone defense, has altered the the three-point line, and have also begun to hand out fines for what they perceive as “flopping.”
ALL GARBAGE!
Courtesy: Bleacher Report
These elements are what made the NBA the great game that it once was. Zone defense belongs where it started, which is on the college level. Defending your man straight-up, via man-to-man defense, was what either made you or broke you in the “old” NBA, and it’s what separated the stars from the superstars. Having a player like Dennis Rodman win Defensive Player of the Year for three consecutive seasons and seven consecutive rebounding titles, all while standing at 6’8″ and weighing a mere 230-pounds, was astonishing! What’s even more amazing is the fact that Rodman accomplished these feats, time and time again, while using his basketball IQ to draw countless charges and hustle his opponents. While some may say he was dramatic in his approach, few can argue with his results, in which he has five NBA championship rings.
In today’s NBA, Commissioner Stern and the league office can watch footage of a game from three days prior, and somehow determine that a player flopped during the game. It baffles me how this can be seen as a fair assessment, especially when it can sometimes takes game officials three, four, or even five replays to determine a simple out-of-bounds call! So how can a group of suits sitting in an New York City office determine that Metta World Peace flopped during a game that took place almost 2,500 miles away (2,462 to be exact)? If you’re a historian of the game of basketball – as am I – then I know your answer to this question. However, we’ll just keep it to ourselves.
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