The past several seasons we tried to pretend the NBA Finals were important because it was The Finals. Except it wasn't the Finals anymore-it was like watching a balloon go flat. Pretending the NBA Finals mattered was just something we became accustomed to; it was like a chore to watch, instead of an event that we had to see.
With the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat advancing to the Finals, this is a series that the league and the fans can care about again. Nobody has to pretend anymore. To the league, it's about ratings. To the fans, it's about the entertaining ride two compelling teams can take us on. And for both, it's about Shaq.
For the first time in a long time, the NBA Finals matter again.
If TV ratings are any indication, NBA fandom dreaded another Pistons-Spurs Championship slowdown-er, showdown. The TV ratings tell the story. In 2005, Game 1-which along with Game 7, should be the most watched games of the series-- drew a rating just under 9.
Historically, the Finals have always been a ratings draw for the NBA, roughly averaging somewhere in the neighborhood of 12-14 million viewers per series over the past 25 years. Until 2003, which drew a 6.5 rating for the Spurs and Nets, the last Finals to receive a rating under 10 was 1981-when the series drew a 6.7 rating and were shown on late night tape delay.
What these ratings say is "who cares about Tim Duncan and his fundamentals"? As impressive as he is, as good of a team as the Spurs are, no one wants to watch them isolate Duncan on the low block while the rest of his teammates stand around waiting for him to be double-teamed. And as much as we praise the team chemistry of the Pistons, no one wants to see them play hard-nosed defense and win games 80-75.
If we really wanted to watch these things, we'd check out a high-school game. But this is the NBA. This is the Finals. We want dunks. We want Magic skyhooks in the lane with five seconds left and finding out the Mailman truly doesn't deliver on Sundays. We want coaches adjusting game plans and playing mind games with one another, working the sidelines with flair.
TV ratings are a reflection of how interested people are in who's playing, not the NBA. By all indications, fans want to see something entertaining-not just NBA basketball. David Stern has always talked about the NBA as an entertainment product. Well, the product has been as entertaining as watching a Chia pet grow the past few years.
But all that changes on Thursday. The Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat are anything but boring. Each of these teams is making its first appearance ever in the Finals.
It almost feels like the next week or two won't be nearly enough time to discuss all the terrific subplots to this series-like Pat Riley's return to the NBA's definitive event by taking his third team to the Finals. Somewhere, Stan Van Gundy is on vacation, with his family, silently stewing. How about Mark Cuban taking the Mavericks to the NBA Finals with his new brand of ownership-let's at least hope the Heat don't win a Game 7 based on a foul call; Cuban will review the tape for three months before sending in a lengthy review to the league and be fined $75,000 for criticizing the officials.
Furthermore, do we realize that all seven games will be played in an arena named after American Airlines, but in two different cities? Or about the possibility of Dwyane Wade being the first superstar from the 2003 Draft Class to win a title? Or that Dirk Nowitzki had to lose his two best friends, Steve Nash and Michael Finley before going to the Finals? What are the odds Dirk is seen holding the Larry O'Brien trophy with a "We are all Nowitnesses" t-shirt on?
There is an actual possibility that Antoine Walker, Jason Williams, Gary Payton or Jerry Stackhouse and Keith Van Horn could all win an NBA title. Just think about that for a moment.
Above all else the NBA Finals are reborn this year because of Shaquille O'Neal. Consider that Shaq is attempting to cement his status as one of the best centers ever. Or that he's playing in the NBA Finals for a sixth time with his third team. Or that he's trying to win his first championship without Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant.
Though Shaq has fallen off in production and dependability the last couple years, now that he's just four wins away from a career defining championship, it would be crazy to think he won't be a force against the Mavs.
Plus, Shaq is one of the last connections the NBA has with its most famous players of the past. One day O'Neal will retire to a life of law enforcement and intimidating people pulled over for a speeding ticket. Until then, he's remains a link between the NBA past of Bird, Jordan, Magic, the Dream Team and the NBA future of Wade, Dirk, LeBron and Kobe.
To bridge the gap between now and when the young stars take over completely, the NBA needs Shaq in the Finals. To help get through the growing pains of the young stars taking over, the fans need Shaq in the Finals. The Finals and the NBA are just better when Shaq is involved.
For the past several seasons, the NBA's fans have been largely dissatisfied by a series that had lost its character. The indiscernible personality of the Finals hurt the league, its ratings and its fans. Instead of looking forward to the NBA Finals, we'd grown tired of it. The culmination of professional basketball was not only unwatchable-it wasn't even interesting.
The Basketball Gods have rewarded us with these Playoffs and this Finals match-up as a gift for putting up with so much. New blood, more entertaining teams, more personality and more Shaq.
The NBA Finals have returned. But this year, it's really back.
Some brief, sarcastic comments on the last few days worth of Sports "news":
Buggin' Out-So Roger Clemens is going through his first (what would you call it, rehab start?) outing since rejoining the Astros, pitching for Class A Lexington Legends last night when his son approaches the mound during the third inning.
"Dad, I just wanted to tell you if you strike out one more guy, the entire crowd gets free wiper fluid."
Upon hearing this news from Koby, the Rocket proceeds to get two more strikeouts, finding the motivation to retire the side. Now every time it rains or a bug splatters the windshield for the next month, people in Lexington will think of Roger Clemens.
I just glad Clemens wasn't down there for "Mullet Appreciate Night" back in May-he would have had to go 1986 on everyone.
Just Sickening-No one should be overly concerned that Dwyane Wade has missed a couple practices because of lingering effects from the flu that hampered him in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. We're talking about practice, man. We're talking about practice.
What would really make Wade sick--and everyone else except Dirk Notwitzki--is if David Hasselhoff sang the National Anthem before one of the games in Dallas.
Hearing crickets-The College Women's World Series match-up between Arizona and Northwestern drew more viewers than Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, which pulled in a cool 611,000 households. Yep, Hockey's definitely making a comeback.
Take it easy, Champ, why don't you sit the next couple plays out-Seems like there are quite a few major leaguers upset at Lastings Milledge for giving some hive fives to the fans after hitting his first major league home-run. This wasn't during play, it was between innings on his way to the field.
Lighten up about baseball's unwritten rules. Perhaps the crackdown on amphetamines has really made some players/managers cranky. Maybe most of these guys need to make peace with themselves for not doing the same thing on their first home-run.
Back soon with the third NGS II Assignment.
In the NBA's post-Jordan hangover, the collective argument has been that the NBA is lost and missing the special qualities it once had. Well, it isn't true.
The NBA's not missing anything. The league is merely traveling through its Space-Time Continuum. Yes, the same theory brought to you by Doc Brown in the 80's classic Back to the Future is alive and well in the NBA.
As Doc Brown explains during the film, key events balance the universe and without each one the course of history is altered. The reason Doc and Marty had to get each event perfect is because if they didn't, the universe would have ceased to exist as they knew it.
Just as we experience things in life that impact our future, without four key events, the NBA would be completely different than the league we know today. And it is because of the league's Space-Time Continuum that we can pinpoint the "Best Things to Happen to the NBA." Take away an event, the league as we know it would begin to disappear like Marty's hand at the 'Enchantment under the Sea' dance.
David Stern
According to Ask Men.com, when Stern became Commissioner of the NBA in 1984, nearly 80% of its teams were losing money and fan interest was at an all-time low. Hard to believe, but the classic 42-point performance in the 1980 Finals by Magic Johnson, as he filled in for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to lead the Lakers to the NBA title, was shown on tape delay at 11:30 p.m.
It was Stern's implementation of a revolutionary salary cap-which altered the economic structure of the NBA, along with changing the relationship between teams and players-that gave the league the financial flexibility it needed to become a global force.
Perhaps the NBA and its premier players would have been successful without Stern, but his marketing prowess of the league and its superstars allows us to enjoy NBA Live video games, custom made jerseys and the famous player-caricature championship t-shirt. If there were no David Stern, we might have an NBA ran by Biff Tannen.
The 3-point shot
While it began as a gimmick to create interest in the league, the 3-point shot has become the most dynamic part of the game. From revolutionizing the modern player prototype to giving new meaning to the phrase "from downtown", the 3-point shot forever changed the face of the NBA. Who would have thought a 7-footer would be draining a 25-foot shot on one possession, then posting up on the next?
Imagine where the NBA would be without it; how drastically altered our historical perspective of the league would be: no Robert Horry prayer against the Kings in the 2002 Western Conference Finals. Reggie Miller would have never been able to single-handedly bring back the Pacers against the Knicks in the '95 Playoffs. And we never would have seen Jordan's famous shrug of the shoulders against Portland in the '92 Finals without the 3-point shot.
Magic, Larry & Michael
Separately, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Michael Jordan all became the face of the NBA-Magic as the personality of the league, Larry as it's hard-working core and Michael as its most talented player ever.
Together they gave us three of the most memorable teams in the history of sports. Without Magic's Lakers, Bird's Celtics, and Jordan's Bulls, we would have missed one of the most compelling rivalries in the history of sports. By combining for 14 NBA Championships in 19 seasons, they ushered in a new era of basketball and reintroduced us to the term "dynasty".
Michael Jordan was the ultimate "event" or "experience" for the league and the fans. Where would we be without Air Jordan's, "Like Mike" commercials, Hanes, the Bulls, the clutch shots, the championships, the tongue-wagging and Space Jam? Well, all but the last one, anyway.
Portland, Phoenix and Utah may have won NBA Championships had there been no Jordan. He became the standard for which all NBA superstars are measured.
Phil Jackson and the Triangle
Jackson may not have won his record tying 9 NBA Championships if it were not for Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, but at last check, none of them have ever won a title without him either.
Sure, Jackson is a little different, but his career winning percentage of .725 going into this season proves that the Zen-master of existential thinking altered the model of coaching in the league.
While tough, no non-sense coaches like Pat Riley and Chuck Daly had always thrived in the NBA, Jackson used philosophy to motivate and relate to his players.
His attached-at-the-hip assistant, Tex Winter, developed an offense called the Triangle that relied on passing and movement to create easy scoring opportunities. The Triangle brought balance to a league run amuck by one-on-one and without it we'd be watching games made up of 'And 1' mixtapes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Every event, while independent of each other, is interconnected in the NBA's Space-Time Continuum. The NBA's success didn't just occur; it materialized as a byproduct of these events happening the way they did. It's hard to imagine the league without David Stern, the 3-point shot, its biggest superstars and its most famous coach.
Be glad that we had each of these four things, or we might be in need of a time-traveling DeLorean, Doc Brown and 1.21 gigawatts of electricity.
Remember the old SNL skit, "Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey"? Well, this is something like that. Only worse.
Eastern Conference Finals:
-The Pistons, as I've said before, could be finished. The theory isn't exactly groundbreaking, but when you get a group of players who have played three full seasons without injuries AND have made a deep run into the playoffs each year, eventually they will run out of steam and out of luck. That's just how it is, that's how it's always been. Think '89 Lakers or '87 Celtics. Things just catch up with you. Things have certainly caught up with Detroit, the players and the coaches.
-With Dwayne Wade's acrobatic, amazing and burned into playoff lore lay-up yesterday, the Pistons are being fit for a playoff toe-tag faster than Marty McFly was when facing a possible duel with Mad Dog Tannen in Back to the Future III.
-That play was indicative of what's wrong with Detroit this post-season. Wade flipped the switch; the Heat have flipped the switch in the Eastern Conference Finals-but the Pistons have stood by and watched, mostly. Had this been 2004 or even 2005, somebody on the Pistons would have wrapped up Wade's arms and prevented the shot from being taken. Somebody would have taken him to the floor. Hard.
-Everyone says not to write off the Detroit Pistons; that they love it when their backs are firmly against the walls and the odds are worse than Pitt-Aniston reconciliation. Well, wish granted. Down 3-1 in the Eastern Conference Finals against a team that has had it in for you for the past twelve months is pretty bad odds. Of the last 43 teams to be down 3 games to 1 in the Conference Finals, only three have came back to win the series.
-Don't blame Flip Saunders for this-as it has been rumored that the Pistons are. (Wasn't that the rumor with this group and Rick Carlisle for awhile? And for a short time last year, Larry Brown? Maybe it's the players, after all.) For all that the Pistons are and claim to be, they sure throw their coach under the bus pretty easily. No, the "Demise of Detroit" is simple logic. Time takes its toll in the NBA, through injuries and fatigue, and there's nothing they can do about it.
In honor of the late, legendary, "That Guy" actor club, I can't help but wonder if Detroit would be fairing better under the tutelage of Paul Gleason. He could have even coached the Pistons as his character in The Breakfast Club, Principal Vernon.
Try and imagine his post game press conferences: "Mess with the bull, you get the horns." Or "I told them the next time I have to call a time-out, I'm crackin' skulls." Or simply imagine Vernon giving a pre-game speech: "You ought to spend a little more time trying to win the game and this series and a little less time worry about trying to impress people." Paul Gleason, you will be missed.
-Yes, these are the things that I think about. All. Day. Long.
-Is it me, or have the Pistons become a mini-version of the Spurs and are beginning to argue and bemoan every call that isn't in their favor?
Western Conference Finals--If Mark Cuban can turn around the Mavericks with his money and enthusiasm, why not the Cubs?
-Sticking with the baseball thing for a second, in baseball, they always say good pitching always beats good hitting. Is that what we're seeing in the Western Conference Finals? From the Dallas Mavericks, of all teams?
The Mavs got burned in Game 1 by 32 fast-break points from Nash and the Suns up-tempo game. They preached defense and stopping the Suns in transition before Game 2. Since that time, they've allowed 25 fast-break points combined in Games 2 & 3 (and just four-4!-in Game 3). Neither team scored a 100 in the Game 3, which is always to the advantage of whoever the Suns are playing. Seems like Phoenix has have run into a wall-good defense.
-The MVP, Steve Nash, has gently called out his teammates, saying they need to show more fight and have "been a little too passive" at times. I don't think it's long before his teammates start fighting back and asking for a piece of the MVP Trophy. After all, they helped him win, and now he's calling them out?
--Hard to believe, but Raja Bell really could be the key to the series for the Suns. Say that again, slowly. Raja Bell.
-Two words (in the voice of Christopher Walken): "More Barbosa".
Back later this week with NGS II Finalist Assignment #2...
You know that annoying ride at Disney World, where all the little mechanical children sing "It's a small world" over and over, until you get off the ride and it's stuck in your head for two days?
Well, that's Barry Bonds right now, annoyingly stuck in my head. Just when I think he's out of sight and out of mind, suddenly, there he is, like the aforementioned song. That concept, in itself is why Bonds has also finally given me reason to acknowledge his greatness, tip my cap, stand and applaud.
It isn't because he will pass Babe Ruth. It isn't because I'm overly compelled to believe he knowingly didn't take steroids. It isn't because of him overcoming adversity, race issues or Father Time.
It is because of the stark realization that Barry Bonds is one of the greatest entertainers of all-time. He's changed the face of sports, entertainment, television and dramatic theater. Bonds is smart, crafty and about ten steps ahead of everyone else.
And I'm a fool because it took me so long to figure it out.
Forget baseball, forget records. Forget your own personal feelings on the man and whether he did or didn't cheat. Focus simply on the idea that we follow the man's every single move, day after day, month after month.
What we're witnessing is exactly what Barry wants us to see. It's all a part of the show-right down to the things he can't even control.
To understand this, we must understand Barry. An enigma of a personality and a baseball player, Bonds is anything but transparent. But if there is one thing we can be certain of throughout his baseball career, it is this: Barry Bonds wants to be remembered. He wants to be a legend-and it doesn't matter how that happens.
It is that truth-the human desire of wanting to be remembered-that has motivated Barry Bonds for the past decade.
Books say that Bonds was upset that Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were breaking records by using steroids, so to prove he was better on or off the juice, Barry did it too. Rumors say Barry was a poor teammate in college and in the pros. Reporters have said Bonds is a jerk in the clubhouse.
Has Barry ever really confirmed or denied anything? No, he hasn't-and it doesn't matter whether any of it is true or not, because we're missing the point.
By not knowing anything, by not knowing what to believe, we become more and more intrigued. And the intrigue feeds our desire as sports fans and humans to know and to believe. It doesn't matter what we believe or know, as long as it's something.
Barry Bonds knows this-he captures us by using the natural human desire of wanting to know.
Think about it: what better way to sway and manipulate the opinions of the people who dislike you than by doing a reality show? Because at the end of last season, it didn't matter what the truth was-if Barry had taken steroids or not, if he would break the record, if he really was as bad as the reporters made him sound-public opinion was all that mattered. And public opinion is hard to change.
Some may never watch, but most will. Because we can't not watch, we have a compulsive need to. The more confused and uncertain we are, the more we watch, the more we try and find little pieces of the Bonds puzzle in order to form our truth of him.
All the time between 713 and 714 did was fan the flames and pique our interest. When will it happen?!? Where will it happen?!? How will fans react?!? How will Barry react?!? Will baseball celebrate?!?
It's just part of the show. Though 'Bonds on Bonds' is on a "break" from filming, I fully expect Bonds to come up with a new way to hold our attention. Even when we're not paying attention to Bonds or his show, we're still paying attention to the story.
Bonds is the ultimate drama in sports and has a sweeps period every week. Who needs an end of the season cliffhanger like The O.C., The Office or 24? We've got the equivalent of a season finale practically every day with Bonds.
Bonds is the legend he always wanted to be. Maybe not in the way he wanted-or we wanted-but he transcends baseball and sports. Few have ever done that. He's polarizing and engaging; despised and cheered.
And he's not going away anytime soon. Like the Disney ride, you experience Bonds once and it stays with you for life, which is exactly what he wanted all along.
It's a Bonds world, after all.
Send Message
Add Friend
Block User
Invite to Group
Report User 
For the first time in a long time, the NBA Finals matter again.
If TV ratings are any indication, NBA fandom dreaded another Pistons-Spurs Championship slowdown-er, showdown. The TV ratings tell the story. In 2005, Game 1-which along with Game 7, should be the most watched games of the series-- drew a rating just under 9.
Historically, the Finals have always been a ratings draw for the NBA, roughly averaging somewhere in the neighborhood of 12-14 million viewers per series over the past 25 years. Until 2003, which drew a 6.5 rating for the Spurs and Nets, the last Finals to receive a rating under 10 was 1981-when the series drew a 6.7 rating and were shown on late night tape delay.
What these ratings say is "who cares about Tim Duncan and his fundamentals"? As impressive as he is, as good of a team as the Spurs are, no one wants to watch them isolate Duncan on the low block while the rest of his teammates stand around waiting for him to be double-teamed. And as much as we praise the team chemistry of the Pistons, no one wants to see them play hard-nosed defense and win games 80-75.
If we really wanted to watch these things, we'd check out a high-school game. But this is the NBA. This is the Finals. We want dunks. We want Magic skyhooks in the lane with five seconds left and finding out the Mailman truly doesn't deliver on Sundays. We want coaches adjusting game plans and playing mind games with one another, working the sidelines with flair.
TV ratings are a reflection of how interested people are in who's playing, not the NBA. By all indications, fans want to see something entertaining-not just NBA basketball. David Stern has always talked about the NBA as an entertainment product. Well, the product has been as entertaining as watching a Chia pet grow the past few years.
But all that changes on Thursday. The Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat are anything but boring. Each of these teams is making its first appearance ever in the Finals.
It almost feels like the next week or two won't be nearly enough time to discuss all the terrific subplots to this series-like Pat Riley's return to the NBA's definitive event by taking his third team to the Finals. Somewhere, Stan Van Gundy is on vacation, with his family, silently stewing. How about Mark Cuban taking the Mavericks to the NBA Finals with his new brand of ownership-let's at least hope the Heat don't win a Game 7 based on a foul call; Cuban will review the tape for three months before sending in a lengthy review to the league and be fined $75,000 for criticizing the officials.
Furthermore, do we realize that all seven games will be played in an arena named after American Airlines, but in two different cities? Or about the possibility of Dwyane Wade being the first superstar from the 2003 Draft Class to win a title? Or that Dirk Nowitzki had to lose his two best friends, Steve Nash and Michael Finley before going to the Finals? What are the odds Dirk is seen holding the Larry O'Brien trophy with a "We are all Nowitnesses" t-shirt on?
There is an actual possibility that Antoine Walker, Jason Williams, Gary Payton or Jerry Stackhouse and Keith Van Horn could all win an NBA title. Just think about that for a moment.
Above all else the NBA Finals are reborn this year because of Shaquille O'Neal. Consider that Shaq is attempting to cement his status as one of the best centers ever. Or that he's playing in the NBA Finals for a sixth time with his third team. Or that he's trying to win his first championship without Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant.
Though Shaq has fallen off in production and dependability the last couple years, now that he's just four wins away from a career defining championship, it would be crazy to think he won't be a force against the Mavs.
Plus, Shaq is one of the last connections the NBA has with its most famous players of the past. One day O'Neal will retire to a life of law enforcement and intimidating people pulled over for a speeding ticket. Until then, he's remains a link between the NBA past of Bird, Jordan, Magic, the Dream Team and the NBA future of Wade, Dirk, LeBron and Kobe.
To bridge the gap between now and when the young stars take over completely, the NBA needs Shaq in the Finals. To help get through the growing pains of the young stars taking over, the fans need Shaq in the Finals. The Finals and the NBA are just better when Shaq is involved.
For the past several seasons, the NBA's fans have been largely dissatisfied by a series that had lost its character. The indiscernible personality of the Finals hurt the league, its ratings and its fans. Instead of looking forward to the NBA Finals, we'd grown tired of it. The culmination of professional basketball was not only unwatchable-it wasn't even interesting.
The Basketball Gods have rewarded us with these Playoffs and this Finals match-up as a gift for putting up with so much. New blood, more entertaining teams, more personality and more Shaq.
The NBA Finals have returned. But this year, it's really back.
