With NBA free agency coming to a close, let’s look forward to the upcoming season and discuss what we can expect in the few months leading up to it.
What should commissioner Adam Silvers' next move be?
The NBA is not perfect.
How could it be? The degree of attraction and popularity that the NBA draws can ensure it will always be under scrutiny and therefore under “construction.”
But this is no secret to those involved in “the league” or to its dedicated fans.
In fact, the NBA’s greatest quality may be the way it determines what needs improvement and then acts on it. Ex-commissioner David Stern instilled this type of culture where self-correction is paramount, and most would agree that Adam Silver has done everything possible to withstand the same focus.
It’s more important to be a league that can notice its own flaws and work to make changes, as opposed to one that is blinded by the ego of its own success.
Again, the NBA is not perfect, but it demonstrates a process that makes it better and better as each obstacle presents itself.
What do we have here?
Hack-a-Shaq. Hack-a-Howard. Hack-a-Deandre. Hack-a-Whoever.
The NBA is now seeing (what some call fair and others view in disgust) a commonly used strategy that is changing basketball as we know and adore it.
Entertainment is everything in the NBA. With the Hack-a-Shaq game plan, coaches have their teams commit intentional, away from the ball fouls on low percentage free throw shooters. Thus, sending them to the line to shoot two, possession after possession after possession. The thought process is to hope they miss the free throws, which they often do, not allowing the opposing team to run their offense or get into any type of rhythm.
Sound entertaining? Not to me.
Watching an NBA player, who gets paid millions of dollars to play basketball, struggle to make what are suppose to be “free points.”
I’ll pass.
The strategy was used most frequently in the playoffs this past season, particularly against the Rockets and Clippers. This is what we involved in basketball call an air ball. The most glaring issue is the way the “Hack-a-Shaq” strategy takes all of the excitement out of the game and brings the entertainment aspect of professional basketball to an all time low.
It’s obvious what side the fans are on, but what does this mean in the world of sponsorship?
The quality of sponsors correlate with the quality of the league.
The more entertaining the league; the better the sponsors.
If entertainment in the NBA begins to decrease, you can be sure it will begin to lose sponsors.
This strategy should not be allowed.
The importance of the NBA acting as entertainment has been expressed around the league, and many changes have been made to meet that standard.
Both fans and sponsors want fast paced, back and forth, “not stopping the game every possession” basketball.
Your move, Commissioner Silver.
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