A fter further review ? Whew! The NBA 2008-09 season is finally over and the Lakers are the champs! The interest in professional Basketball was at an all-time high with the Orlando Magic in the finals for only the second time in their history.
Since Kevin Garnett (Celtics), "Melo" (Nuggets) and LeBron (Cavs) were not present, the focus was on Dwight (Magic) and, of course, Kobe of the Lakers. These megastars, plus many others, are obviously maintaining fan interest. However, several things still are troublesome with the NBA . First and foremost, the game was designed, and played for years, as a team sport. Today's stars are certainly just as talented as some of those in the past, yet, when one cites the champions of the past, the team name is mentioned first. In today's game the fans' attention seems to focus on individual players excellent as they may be but the team takes second place. Seldom do you see an NBA team move the ball around to get the best open shot. Too often, it's just cast away, hope that it goes in and if it doesn't, fall back and play defense. Should the NBA move the 3-point arc to 26 or 27 feet so that a team must work together for the best open shot?
Second, maybe they should raise the basket to 12 feet, which has been suggested in past years. When the rules changed some 30 plus years ago to allow the dunk, the game of Basketball became an above-the-rim game. Raise the basket and it becomes a different game.
Third, refereeing the NBA game is the most difficult of all officiating. TNT's Charles Barkley (2006 NBA Hall of Famer) said, "It's terrible officiating. They've been stinking the whole playoffs." May I suggest, Sir Charles, that the officiating issues lie with the rules and the interpretation thereof, not with the officials. When you allow players to shuffle their size 15-plus Nikes (called traveling) to balance themselves for a slam dunk or carry the ball (called palming) plus the allowance of aggressive physical contact you can easily see how the game has become harder to officiate.
Finally, today's players seem to want to draw attention more to their appearance than the stars of the past. Almost every NBA player feels it necessary to adorn himself with tattoos. Yes, I know tattoos are in and today's younger generation loves them; but why does an NBA player need that kind of attention?
Will you watch the NBA for the individual showmanship or the game of Basketball because it is a team sport?
For more information about Jim Tunney, visit his Web site: www.JimTunney.com , or if you would like to respond to this message, send your e-mail to Jim@JimTunney.com
