I was out celebrating my birthday last night, and so missed the NBA All-Star game, but the statistics point out exactly what’s wrong with the game today. 44 dunks and 16 missed free throws (out of 32). The truth is that players are no longer shooting the ball all that accurately. Free throws are just the most glaring example. Sports Illustrated had an article this week about why most NBA games are so low-scoring. Sure, there’s some better defence being played. But on the whole, I think there are far too many shots clanging off the rim these days. If I were a coach, I’d have my players shooting hours of free throws.
UPDATE: 12-time All-Star Oscar Robertson just published a scathing piece in the Sunday New York Times slamming the NBA’s deterioration into a shoe-selling organization and decrying the lack of fundamental skills among many of today’s players. Choice quotes:
- “Many players can’t dribble or defend. It’s dunks and 3-pointers, with nothing in between.”
- “When people tell me that scores are lower because defenses are better, I have to laugh.”
- “The NBA has made a conscious decision to function as a marketing and entertainment organization, and seems much more concerned with selling sneakers, jerseys, hats and highlight videos than with the product it puts on the floor.”
(Link – free NYT registration required)
P.S. Paul, if you’re reading this, I promise one day to blog about “What’s Wrong With Our Political System” but, contrary to Mr. Chomsky’s views, I don’t see that as quite as simple. We could start by getting our politicians to shoot more free throws, though.
The public gets what the public wants.
Will we just admit that most people are simple minded and have simple needs: that is, food, shelter, clothes, and a fantasy world that makes them feel safe. Oh, and the right to whine and throw stones when they don’t get it. Truth, honesty, effort, dedication and fairness need not apply.
Pro sports is not about athletics, today — it is about fame. Which is to say, it’s about power.
Society is going back to its roots. Power is everything. Sports is about power. I’m surprised Chomsky hasn’t figured that out.
Let me elaborate a tiny bit: the populace is growing juvenile, both literally and figuratively. Sports attracts a lot of kids, who have more money, who buy crap and only care about who wins. Kids are not subtle.
I think young people — and the cult surrounding them — have too much economic and social power, and not enough maturity or social responsibility to know what to do with it, and it’s screwing with our societies. The worship of youth is inspiring adults to emulate childish behaviour, aggravating the problem. But then again, I’m getting old, cranky, and envious, so don’t listen to me.
Thanks for your comments, Brent. Did you read the Oscar Robertson article, by the way? He slams the NBA for pandering to the hip-hop culture. Sports reflects trends in the larger culture, as you point out.
For a good laugh, you should read Bill Simmons article on ESPN.com’s Page 2 about “Ways to Improve the All Star Game,” it’s a riot.
That said, some intteresting points:
1) The All Star Game is in NO WAY reflective of the play that occurs on a nightly basis in the NBA. OF COURSE it was all dunks and no shooting, these guys are partying for three days straight, not competeing for anything meaningful.
2) The quality of play in the NBA IS DETRIORATING, All Star game or no. The NBA takes kids straight out of high school, they have no minor leagues any more. The college game has become so much different than the pro game that the two bear little resemblance to one another. College players play fundamentally sound (most of them) because they have to. They play in a 160 something team league, anyone can go to the tourney and (technically) anyone can win it. They have to play that way to get where they are going.
3) Oscar’s slam about the NBA and the hip-hop culture is a direct offshoot of young players skipping college and going pro early. The NBA generates billions of dollars off it’s product, and kudos to them for running a succesful business. The lure of that money to players with lots of talent an horrible lives in impoverished homes is easy to see. Take a player like Iverson, who grew up in a basement tenement home that used to regularly flood with sewage, in a gang neigborhood where hip-hop culture was all there was. Should this guy spend 4 years in college playing ball on scholarship when he can barely meet the academic requirements while his family lives in filth and poverty? SHould he risk a career ending injury playing for free in the Final Four when he could get himself and his family out of a hellish situation? Is he not likely to bring the hip-hop culture in which he was raised into the NBA with him? Will only the street ball skills and his amazing physical ability be enough to carry him in the Pro game? It is when players like this are the majority and not the minority in the league, as they are becoming. The hip-hop culture will then follow them into the NBA, because that’s where they too can make their money. The curse of the allmighty dollar. If you don’t believe it, take a look at the player that is being dubbed the “Soul of the Game” by Nike, and the second coming of Jordan by everyone else. He just graduated. From High School.
Somewhat related- I’m doing an ethnographic study of Champs Sports’ method of producing culture. They classify their stores as either ‘urban’ or ‘suburban’. The suburban stores make more money, but the Urban stores are where the ‘image’ is produced- the black athletes, musicians, etc.
One of the workers, a manager, in my local Champs informed me that the District Manager once asked him wether or not the customer base was black or white- and used the information to classify the store ‘suburban’.
I also found an email that the Head Merchandiser sent to all the stores asking for a list of Mom and Pop Competitors in the local area, and whether or not they cater to the Urban/fashion customer or the Suburban/basic fan customer.
The sneaker industry ruined the game.