Why I've Hated the NBA Since '95

A good bit of my youth was spent playing basketball. I grew up idolizing the Celtics of the 80s. Their style of team play, hustling on defense, and selflessness defined how I understood to play the game. (A funny anecdote: when I moved to Georgia and played basketball my teammates would look at me funny because I'd set picks--get this--away from the ball! They didn't know why I was cluttering around them. Dumbasses didn't know to move and create space. They just let the point dribble, drive, shoot and then they'd crash the boards. Lame.)

During the 90s a shift happened. A shift I've always blamed on Michael Jordan. Yes, he was a tenacious competitor, a tremendous defender, and went for the kill better than anybody in sports in my lifetime. I respected Jordan, but his skill level allowed him to individually dominate games whenever he wanted. Something everyone else can only dream about.

Ball players of my generation grew up watching and aspiring to achieve that level of greatness. The problem came when nobody could duplicate his style and skill level. How many times have broadcasters and anchors coined somebody as "The Next Jordan?" There will never be another player like Jordan and I wish we'd stop searching. Enter Kobe and LeBron. Both are incredible athletes, but they have their own style of play. Let's let them be who they are, because they're doing a damn fine job at that.

Now, what really irks me is the discussion we've been hearing on SportsCenter and sports talk radio shows today. "Who rocked Madison Square Garden more this week?" Who cares? Why has this league become all about individuals? There's no question the NBA has been losing ground in America's consciousness, and I really think we hate the shift from a team game to individual competion. Not only has the game centered around individual match-ups, now it's about individuals that aren't even playing against one another. Lame.

I'm not suggesting all teams pattern their play after San Antonio. Most fans don't/can't appreciate their style of play. The Spurs are the basketball equivalent of Ambien. But, my hypothesis is that if every franchise played more team basketball, we'd see better competitions. And maybe we'd start watching again.