I don't know. Maybe it's me. But I just can't seem to find much room for NBA basketball in my life.
I ventured to the Sixers game tonight with 3 friends. Free tickets, great seats, Sixers had a blow out win over Oklahoma City (who??). But the most memorable part turned out to be listening to my friend get excited over Matt Cord's echo effects on the PA system. This enthrallment led to endless imitations of said echo by using a plastic drinking cup and saying stupid words and sentences and ending them all with a fake echo. Oh yeah, that and seeing the Camden High School band win the evening's battle of the bands contest. In other words, the game was quite boring.
Unfortunately the NBA just doesn't have that spark like it once did, at least in my eyes. Maybe I got spoiled watching Jordan, Magic, Barkley, Bird, and players from that era who seemed to have a lot of personality, skills and heart. Or maybe it's just that it's the same old highlights over and over... dunks, blocked shots, and three pointers. It's not like football where there are so many possibilities of what will happen on any given play, or like baseball where there are countless intricate strategies going on at any moment, or even soccer where the players essentially do the same basic things as basketball players do but do it using their feet instead.
Not only that but every single second at the game there's some incessant music playing, promotion being announced, ad flashing all over the place or other unnecessary distraction going on. There really wasn't much noise at the half-empty Wachovia Center other than when there was music trying to pump people up or a few pep squad wannabes banging on boards trying to make noise. Just doesn't feel genuine to me, not to mention the fact that you can't even talk to your friends because the music's so loud.
Well, what can I say, I'm not much of an NBA fan. But at least college basketball is starting...
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2 comments:
I've missed your blog for the past couple of weeks, so thanks for posting something and sharing your interesting take on the world of (Philly) sports!
I agree with you 100% about the NBA being boring. I am a huge fan of team sports, and I don't see the NBA as much of a team game any more. Sure, some teams like San Antonio and Detroit, still play a team game, but for the most part the NBA is all about individuals. If you have one or two stellar players, then you have enough to make a serious playoff run.
Ugh.
The worst part about the NBA is watching highlights on local TV. Sure, they show the dunks and blocks, just like on SportsCenter, but they also have another 30 seconds to fill. Watching a basket scored in the first quarter is just not entertaining or meaningful. Maybe we can go to a Flyers game together, where there is still fluid action and teamwork!
Actually, the NBA is quite intriguing in other parts of the nation. The Portland Trailblazers are tearing it up and the Celtics are simply nasty. Chris Paul is amazing to watch and the rookies Beasley, Mayo and Derrick Rose are amazing. The Iverson-Pistons experiment seems to be failing.
But, yes, are beloved Sixers and most of the league are painful. I live in NYC now, so I'm going to see them in the Garden in January. Hoping those two stinkers give me something entertaining.
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