as an NBA fan of ~20 years, I’ll point out several things that irk me and probably irk the casual consumer to some degree:
1) The TNT crew is right when they complain about how the game has devolved due to the emphasis on three point attempts/analytics. Every team in the league emphasizes an almost identical offensive game plan now — at the expense of the creativity, originality, and improvisation that used to make teams unique and form identity. This makes for an oft-boring product to consume, especially for casual viewers.
2) Reffing across the league is atrocious, inconsistent, and often blatantly fixed. Why do the Lakers have the most free throw attempts (by a mile) each of the last four seasons (since LeBron arrived)? Why are players (see Andre Drummond/Victor last week) getting ejected for another player flopping and then reinstated into the game (without explanation)? Reffing is inconsistent, favors big markets/star players, and works hand-in-hand with flopping by the players to create a maddening and slow product on the court.
3) It’s hard not to notice and become annoyed with the increase in ads within the NBA over the past few years in particular. Whether it’s the jersey patches, court ads, or the basically unwatchable State Farm NBA All Star Weekend presented by Michelob and SKIMS. I could barely see the court during the In Season Tournament this year there were so many ads across it. These ads take away from the sense of game purity, and I feel like I’m watching a game show more than a sports game.
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It’s my favorite time of year…Weather’s getting good and it's the glorious NBA postseason, where winning and losing matters a lot. Storylines are all unpredictable, lotsa surprises, upsets, script changes…Always some old reputations tarnished (Chris Paul?) new legacies born (Ja Morant). Right now we’re watching The Championship Finals and I'm still not really over the Heat loss, but decided that the only way I'm gonna have fun this series is if I get into my little Warriors Mode. This decision is in-part due to my hatred for the Celtics: their dumb, whiny attitude, ruthless media-chokehold, and basically all that the Bostonian culture represents...though I also tend to enjoy watching the Warriors win (in more ways than one) with Steph Curry being a unique points-machine wizard, and the team having motion offense brilliance with a little bit of awesome zone defense sprinkled in too. Speaking of fuckin Cool defense, special shouts-out to the tenacious Draymond Green for making Game 2 special to watch. His energy is super contagious when he's all charged up, talkin shit, startin shit, able to both guard his guy while also being everywhere else at once... that's what I call fun basketball!!! But enough about that, the point of this is to say it's not always easy figuring out where to watch games (blackout broadcasting, league Pass scams, Hulu glitching) so look to NBA reddit streams as an easy way to throw on any game for free.
Jun 7, 2022
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Loved it as a child, fell out of love, and now love it again <3
The games have been so fun this season and I love having fav players, watching my fav players, rooting for my teams. You can go to a bar and lose your mind with the general public!! You can make friends and enemies!! You can talk to your coworkers about “the game last night” !!
I love you basketball.
Apr 25, 2024
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and that is reality television baby
Feb 18, 2024
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About a year ago, I started my first (public sector) union job after years of non-union work for different companies in the private sector. The difference in collective bargaining (0-100), benefits, job security, and mental/physical well being has been nothing short of amazing.
If you are currently strung out, feeling hopeless about your career in a private sector/non-union position or field, and are wondering if there’s something better for you - there is. I took a massive pay cut from private-public for the many benefits of a union job, and it was 100% worth it. Roughly 35% of public sector jobs are union-represented, and that percentage is higher in blue, worker-friendly states. Start applying to open positions that may interest you on your local/state government’s job board, use any connection you may have (I didn’t have one and still found something) - there is a better career for you out there :)
Oct 21, 2024
Mar 5, 2024