Let's be honest about what the NBA's biggest problem is now. Zion Williamson and Ja Morant failed to step into roles the league was preparing them for

[Soldier]

Time for the NBA to stop being lazy and archaic and actually find a new way to promote teams .

It makes ZERO since that fanbases can rock with the Lions and Browns for 60 years but it’s impossible for the NBA to have the same loyalty

This is truly baffling. Only teams in the nba who enjoy the level of loyal support traditionally reserved for historically trash NFL teams like the bills/jets/dolphins/lions/browns are legacy marquee teams like the Celtics, Bulls, Knicks, 76ers and Lakers.

The Pistons have had a much better history, much more success, legendary players, division titles, conference titles, final appearances, league championships than the Lions during the last 40 years but the lions are still much more popular than them

Also the delusional and unnecessary need of too many nba fans to have cool, charismatic and fun star players in the league. I mean what’s wrong with boring star players as long as they ball? I don’t care about their personality, vibes or aura. I only care about their skill, talent and performances. In the nfl, most of the star players and faces of the league are legitimately boring (mahomes, kelce, burrow, Lamar, Allen, russ Wilson, Herbert, Brady, Peyton/Eli manning and rodgers before them) but the ratings remain stronger than ever regardless. That’s because in football, teams matter. Fans care first and foremost about what’s happening on the field. They don’t care what’s happening out of the field. They don’t care that much about their field antics, personalities, love lives and fashion styles. Hardcore fans don’t care about these things, only bird brained, shallow, superficial, and capricious casuals do, and unfortunately those people, player Stans and bitter Contrarians are a big percentage of people who follow the nba.

 

[My Girl is Bow Legged]

nikkas told me ant was the face of the league now what happened?

 

[T-K-G]

You should have made this thread earlier in the week

last night was the first big night of all the young teams having amazing games and the old stars looking completely at the same time. The shift is happening this year.


The conversation has definitely moved on from Zion, Ja can gain momentum back he just has to move to a bigger market city

This thread is overlooking how much the market of the city matters

Case and point :

Saw this tweet yesterday

Now imagine if Joker played in New York, Gianni's was in LA....

Yea Boston has a winning history but the actual city of Boston isn't on anyone's media radar like that

The chase for parity hurt the league's promotion more than anything, Silver folded to the small market teams whining and it ended up deflating the rest of the league.


You gotta let some of these big franchises be the villains of the league

 

[Soldier]

You should have made this thread earlier in the week

last night was the first big night of all the young teams having amazing games and the old stars looking completely at the same time. The shift is happening this year.


The conversation has definitely moved on from Zion, Ja can gain momentum back he just has to move to a bigger market city

This thread is overlooking how much the market of the city matters

Case and point :


Now imagine if Joker played in New York, Gianni's was in LA....

Yea Boston has a winning history but the actual city of Boston isn't on anyone's media radar like that

The chase for parity hurt the league's promotion more than anything, Silver folded to the small market teams whining and it ended up deflating the rest of the league.


You gotta let some of these big franchises be the villains of the league

Nobody cared about big market teams like the NY Knicks, Chicago Bulls, and LA Lakers when the heat, spurs, warriors and cavs were going to the finals and were winning championships during last decade . Superstar players will make small market/mid-market teams big just off their presence. Lebron and Kyrie made the Cavs as revelant as the Knicks and lakers. Lebron, Bosh, Dwayne Wade and Shaq put Miami on the map and made them revelant. Tim Duncan and kawhi Leonard made San Antonio famous. The splash brothers and KD raised the profile of the warriors and made them a big market franchise.

If Zion ever became the superstar everyone thought he would be, New Orleans would be revelant and the center of the basketball world and would be a big market team as long as he performed well and stayed there with the pelicans.

You place any superstar in any city and on any team , that franchise suddenly becomes a big market franchise. What were the bulls before Jordan? Cows.

 

[BigMoneyGrip]

If these dudes were playing on a regular basis, all this side talk about ratings and 3s would be a lot quieter. The stan machine would be fed and distracted.

Everything was set up for these dudes to be the next faces and now there is a void where they were supposed to be.

One player spent too much time at Willie Mae’s and the other thinking he John Wick

 

[MeachTheMonster]

Yup, no young superstars to cary the torch now that bron and steph are on their way out.

They better find somebody quick

 

[darryl]

This outdated playbook of trying to find the next “guy” is the cause of this.

Doesnt matter if Zion reached his peak he was never going to be the face of the league because he was never going to be better than Jokic,Giannis,Luka or whatever final form Wemby takes .

Can’t be the face when you’re borderline top 5 which he would’ve been

Time for the NBA to stop being lazy and archaic and actually find a new way to promote teams .

It makes ZERO since that fanbases can rock with the Lions and Browns for 60 years but it’s impossible for the NBA to have the same loyalty

Nobody cares about jokic cac

 

[MJ Truth]

Ratings would still be the same. Discourse would still be the same. Neither of those guys were gonna be MJ or Bron and carry the league.

 

[Braman]

Correct in theory but the way you framed it is actually part of the problem

Ja and Zion were supposed to be faces of the league bc they are/were phenoms playing basketball. Instead you describe it as some rigged conspiracy. THATS one of the core issues. The fanbase is flooded with folk who are either casuals or just bitter and more interested in debates and storylines, and they don’t actually know/like/play/understand actual basketball

 

[FukkaPaidEmail]

NBA has been about individual dominance since the beginning

Basketball is not football

Which means it’s time for the NBA to stop being archaic and stop using the Jordan playbook.

The best players are foreign …and it won’t change for a long time .

You can’t just shoehorn Ant,Ja,or whoever as the face when the guy holing the MVP trophy is gonna be French,Canadian,Slovenian Serbian,Greek ,African and etc.

It’s proven at this point you can’t market intl players the same and have the same impact .

 

[cartierhoe]

Ratings would still be the same. Discourse would still be the same. Neither of those guys were gonna be MJ or Bron and carry the league.

This, most of the people who complain about the league would still be complaining about the league. Most of the coli doesn't watch games as it is, Zion has never played in a playoff game, to expect him to "carry" the league all of a sudden is straight stupid. Also Memphis hasn't even reached a conference finals so we still have yet to see Ja's impact on ratings as a whole. Basketball would still be played the same way if both those guys played 82 games straight, if you need those guys to get you to watch basketball maybe you just don't like basketball, that's fine though but don't act like the NBA's success hinges on that.

 

[Devil Plisken…CMS]

Which means it’s time for the NBA to stop being archaic and stop using the Jordan playbook.

The best players are foreign …and it won’t change for a long time .

You can’t just shoehorn Ant,Ja,or whoever as the face when the guy holing the MVP trophy is gonna be French,Canadian,Slovenian Serbian,Greek ,African and etc.

It’s proven at this point you can’t market intl players the same and have the same impact .

I said since the beginning and you mention Michael Jordan?

 

[FukkaPaidEmail]

This is truly baffling. Only teams in the nba who enjoy the level of loyal support traditionally reserved for historically trash NFL teams like the bills/jets/dolphins/lions/browns are legacy marquee teams like the Celtics, Bulls, Knicks, 76ers and Lakers.

Pistons have had more success, legendary players, division titles, eastern conference titles, league championships than the Lions during the last 40 years but the lions are still much more popular than them

Also the delusional and unnecessary need of too many nba fans to have cool, charismatic and fun star players in the league. I mean what’s wrong with boring star players as long as they ball? I don’t care about their personality, vibes or aura. I only care about their skill, talent and performances. In the nfl, most of the star players and faces of the league are legitimately boring (mahomes, kelce, burrow, Lamar, Allen, russ Wilson, Herbert, Brady, manning and dodgers before them) but the ratings remain stronger than ever regardless. That’s because in football, teams matter. Fans care first and foremost about what’s happening on the field. They don’t care what’s happening out of the field. They don’t care that much about their field antics, personalities, love lives and fashion styles. Hardcore fans don’t care about that only bird brained, shallow, superficial,
and capricious casuals.

Lions and the Pistons should be the poster child for this .

One team ain’t won shyt but have unwavering loyalty and will forever .


Pistons have 3 titles,5 finals appearances and don’t get half the loyalty



Shai “boring “ so the thunder don’t get prime time games even though they one of the best teams in the league

It’s ass-backwards and it’s the NBA’s fault

 

[Lucky_Lefty]

Who cares?

 

[FukkaPaidEmail]

I said since the beginning and you mention Michael Jordan?

ok fine

They need to stop using the 1960s playbook

That’s even worse