Parade Magazine's "6 Ways to Fix the NBA"

http://www.parade.com/news/2010/06/06-6-ways-to-fix-the-nba.html

(They still don't get it...but some of the posters responding to it do)

<div id="exclusiveText">Pro basketball is in need of a game change</div>
<h1>6 Ways to Fix the NBA</h1>
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by Stephen Fried

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<div id="publicationDate">Published: 06/06/2010</div><div ="main"> </div>


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</div></div></div></div>Pro baseball might be America's pastime and pro
football our most popular and profitable
game, but professional basketball, our other major homegrown sport, has
the most recognizable and
exciting American athletes in the world. Yet at the same time, the
National Basketball Association
(NBA) is facing one of its most challenging moments ever.



The league is finishing what commissioner David Stern concedes to
PARADE is its most
economically disastrous season ever -- $400 million in the red, nearly
twice what it has lost in
tough years before. Fewer fans are going to games, the result of a bad
economy but also of what a
veteran NBA observer calls "too many meaningless games, too many
watered-down rosters." The
competitive balance of the league could be further upset on July 1, when
LeBron James and the most
gifted group of hoops free agents ever will be able to switch teams. And
next year's expiration of
the collective bargaining agreement raises the possibility of a new
relationship among the NBA, its
players, and its fans, along with the threat of a strike or lockout. As a
season-ticket holder for
the Philadelphia 76ers and a die-hard fan, I'm concerned about what the
future holds for the
league, but I'm also intrigued by the prospects for change.



NBA attendance was soft again this year -- 18 of 30 teams saw a drop
-- and the only reason
the numbers weren't worse was the desperate ploys some teams used to
fill seats. At 76ers games,
traditional halftime entertainment has been almost entirely replaced by
local school dance troupes,
whose members and families are charged admission and urged to sell
tickets themselves.



When I ask about the empty seats, commissioner Stern answers: "What
the attendance shows is
that markets are very different. Some are more sensitive to the quality
of the product on the
floor," seemingly acknowledging that some fans are staying home because
of weak games. However, he
points to tweaks the NBA made this year that created faster and
higher-scoring games. Stern is also
encouraged by the league's explosive growth both online and abroad and
promises, "Over the next
several years, you'll see an NBA with divisions in Europe." He places
much of the blame for the
league's problems on contractual issues, including guaranteed salaries
that have locked teams into
paying players exorbitant sums of money. The NBA's economic structure
"does not work," he says,
"and we need a sustainable business model."



The balance of power within the NBA has been skewed for a while. In
the past few years,
perhaps only five teams have seriously contended for championships, and
in the past 26 years, only
seven cities have enjoyed victory parades. Compare that to the NFL,
where nine different teams have
won Super Bowls in a dozen years. And the amazing free-agent class up
for grabs next month -- which
also includes Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Dirk Nowitzki -- could lead
to a greater disparity in
talent, since the same handful of teams are likely to stockpile the
All-Stars.



Even more important to the NBA's future is the 2011 expiration of
the collective bargaining
agreement, which establishes the rules for the division of revenues,
player contracts, trades, and
the salary cap. While stalled talks could lead to a strike or lockout --
the last one wrecked the
1998-99 season with the cancellation of 30-plus games -- few believe
that will happen. But as
negotiations heat up, the NBA is heading into a fascinating period when
there are more
chances to change, improve, or mess up the game than ever before. "We
need to grow this game," says
superagent David Falk, who represented Michael Jordan and reps other top
players today. The changes
are "going to be very, very extreme, because I think the times are
extreme."



Stern says changes are up to the league's rules committee but admits
to one "quirk as a fan."
He thinks the offensive interference rules should be abolished, letting
"anyone do anything with
the ball above the rim." Here, according to a few NBA watchers, are six
more ways to revive the
sport we love -- some practical, some improbable, all worth considering.





SIX SAVES



1. CHANGE THE FOUL-OUT RULES.

"Instead of ejecting a player after six foul," says agent Steve
Mountain, who represents
Orlando's Jameer Nelson, "assess a technical for fouls six and seven,
and eject after eight. This
would keep the best players in the game longer."




2. INCREASE SCORING.

"Shorten the 24-second shot clock to 20 seconds to make for more
possessions," Falk says. "Or
create a four-point play. People thought the three-point shot would
destroy the game, but it added
to it instead."




3. RAISE THE AGE LIMIT.

"You should have to be out of high school for three years to play in
the NBA," Falk says.
Playing college hoops would allow athletes to develop a fan base that
they could carry with them
into the pros.




4. ENCOURAGE QUIRK.

"There's a reason why Charles Barkley, who is retired, is still
getting endorsements," says
Sports Illustrated writer Jon Wertheim, who has covered the NBA
for 13 years, "and, say,
Tim Duncan and Carmelo Anthony aren't. Today, the players with
personality often have the color
bleached out of them." Blogger Bethlehem Shoals of FanHouse.com advises,
"They should Twitter all
the time. It could be a lifeline to these guys' personalities."




5. CHANGE THE TRADE RULES.

"Eliminate or significantly reduce rules that require salaries of
traded players to match
up," Mountain says.




6. SHORTEN THE SEASON.

The NBA's season comprises 82 games. Reducing the number of contests
could make each one
matter much more to players and fans alike. As Falk explains, "In pro
football, there are only 16
games, so every game is critical."

The NBA is showing cracks again. They better pray that the lockout does not happen. Cities are whoring themselves to LeBron to come there. But let's take a look at the 6 ways.

1. Is all wrong. If anything they fouls should be lowered to 5. It will encourage team play, value possesions of the ball, and may deter the hack-a-Shaq defense a bit.

2. I think is wrong also. It already looks like a fast break back and forth. I don't want it looking like the All-Star Game with no defense. Keep it the way it is for now. They barely use the shot clock anyways unless it is under 4 minutes with the lead.

3. I'm for this though I doubt it will happen. Too many legal challenges could occur and the NBA has already won 1 fight about this. The reason I would want them to go to school isn't about the fan base. (the NBA relegated the NCAA to a boarding school, the fans don't identify with alot of players hence the stronger loyalty to the school for the fans) It's to work on teamwork, fundamentals, and at least be able to get enough education to not go broke after the playing days or over and not get arrested for stupid stuff.

4. Nobody saying the players have to be bland. They can have personality but there is a limit. What they consider personality (dancing before the tip off, spraying powder in the air, degrading towelboys, playing hip-hop music DURING the possesion, bland games/no defense/lack of whites in most part) doesn't appeal to me. I understand that it may appeal to a different kind of fan. But if they want my (and it looks like alot of other people too) dollars back, they're going to have to severly cut back on that if not elimiate it completely.

5. I would agree with this. I just don't want teams loading up on good players. I just want an even playing field.

6. I agree. Just too long. How can the fans keep interest when even the players don't.

Just my two cents.

"...too many watered-down rosters." This is the heart of the problem. NBA teams have paid far too much for below-average talent. They can fix this by cutting the number of teams in the league.

Why are they talking about wanting to 'fix' the NBA? The league has been fixed since the eighties!

The NBA is pretty much a hopeless cause.

I check the boxscores sometimes to see how a white player or two I like is doing.

The NBA sucks, and, as pistol pete says, it's been "fixed" the way they want it for many years now.

I could care less about the NBA, may it continue to decline while the NHL rises above it! I love playing basketball, one of my favorite leissure activities, but the NBA is a joke of a league. It is littered with primma donnas and poorly played basketball. The NBA I would appreciate has been dead since the '70's. I respect all the talented whites who continue to play the game, but the NBA has an agenda to hold out American born whites..

I wonder if the Stanley Cup Finals had more viewers than the Negro Basketball Association Finals. I haven't watched any games at all in the playoffs. No one to cheer for.

mrjohnnynofear said:

The NBA is showing cracks again. They better pray that the lockout does not happen. Cities are whoring themselves to LeBron to come there. But let's take a look at the 6 ways.

1. Is all wrong. If anything they fouls should be lowered to 5. It will encourage team play, value possesions of the ball, and may deter the hack-a-Shaq defense a bit.

2. I think is wrong also. It already looks like a fast break back and forth. I don't want it looking like the All-Star Game with no defense. Keep it the way it is for now. They barely use the shot clock anyways unless it is under 4 minutes with the lead.

3. I'm for this though I doubt it will happen. Too many legal challenges could occur and the NBA has already won 1 fight about this. The reason I would want them to go to school isn't about the fan base. (the NBA relegated the NCAA to a boarding school, the fans don't identify with alot of players hence the stronger loyalty to the school for the fans) It's to work on teamwork, fundamentals, and at least be able to get enough education to not go broke after the playing days or over and not get arrested for stupid stuff.

4. Nobody saying the players have to be bland. They can have personality but there is a limit. What they consider personality (dancing before the tip off, spraying powder in the air, degrading towelboys, playing hip-hop music DURING the possesion, bland games/no defense/lack of whites in most part) doesn't appeal to me. I understand that it may appeal to a different kind of fan. But if they want my (and it looks like alot of other people too) dollars back, they're going to have to severly cut back on that if not elimiate it completely.

5. I would agree with this. I just don't want teams loading up on good players. I just want an even playing field.

6. I agree. Just too long. How can the fans keep interest when even the players don't.

Just my two cents.

Click to expand...

Good comments! I agree, you mentioned most of what I didn't like about the original list. I could also add that waiting for players to graduate would be a BIG help to white players since white players NEVER leave the league early for the draft.

I would INCREASE the clock, ball possesion basketball can be more interesting then fast break basketaball, it hasn't hurt the college game. I would also support a 4 point arc since it would be a boon to white players who frequently are good from long range. Another thing I would do is change the rules back to calling fouls for carrying which they ignore too much now.

Expansion to Europe would be okay if they let the teams have a "personality" i.e stock the roster with local talent-read white guys. I really think it will never happen though the cost in travel would be astronomical and it would cut into the Euro leagues which would not be too happy to have to compete against the NBA.

How about more white players? Maybe the NBA can get back to it's roots and draft more highly skilled white Americans instead of this afrolete circus it has become. I have a feeling if things continue the way they are going we won't see more than a few white American players in the NBA in a decade. It's gotten that bad.

I read a few of the comments and there seemed to be a lot of folks who recommend raising the basket height. That wouldn't help matters IMHO. It would still favor big lugs with long arms (black) and few skills. A perfect example is DeMarcus Cousins. He's going to be in the top 5 and he's a marginal athlete. He's big and has long arms, period. Standing reach of 9'-5".

How about my solution. Paint another circle to mirror the 3 point line about 8-10 feet from the basket. Any shot from inside that line (close to the basket) would be worth 1 point. Any shot between that line and the 3 point line would be worth 2, and obviously any shot outside the 3 point line is worth 3. You would call it based on where the players feet were located. Why should a 1 foot shot be equal in value to a 20 foot shot? That simple rule change would devalue the extremely large players who can do nothing but dunk and place a greater value on shooting.

Another simple rule change would be to go to 4 on 4 or 3 on 3 to give the players more room to move. Other obvious ones that have been pointed out would be to call fouls and traveling. Just calling palming would make a huge difference. There are a host of black guards who couldn't play the game if they couldn't palm the ball. Iverson wouldn't have had a career if he couldn't palm the ball to set up his crossover.

The palming and traveling rules have become greatly relaxed. You can see players (Lebron in particular) getting away with 3 steps on a regular basis. The so-called amazing crossover is only possible through palming. A rule change I'd love to see is calling a foul during instant replay, too many players (like Garnett) get away with dirty plays.

Implementing several NCAA & International rules to the NBA might make it viewer friendly for all. The current rules are obviously to benefit the athletic, but wait, I don't find any dunks from Lebron or Howard amazing. I actually find the dunks of Jordan, Wilkins, Barkley, and Chambers even more amazing. The dunking things gotten too boring really.

I think it's time to change the rules and give more emphasis to perimeter oriented players like Nowitzki and Nash. I always found the perimeter game more exciting than the slashing game. That's what drew me to the sport in the first place, the art of shooting the ball.

Highlander said:

4. ENCOURAGE QUIRK.

" Blogger Bethlehem Shoals of FanHouse.com advises,
"They should Twitter all
the time. It could be a lifeline to these guys' personalities."

Click to expand...

More likely it would be a incessant stream of faux-macho posturing and petty rivalries expressed in an unholy mixture of ebonics and net-speak riddled with spelling and grammatical errors. Unfortunately the DWFs just lap that stuff up like a bunch of TMZ watching girls.