Could the NBA ever accomplish the impossible?
And I mean the impossible.
Could professional basketball equal or even overtake the NFL for American sports supremacy in the coming years?
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| Promoting superstars like Dwight Howard can do wonders for the NBA's often shaky image. (AP) |
Blasphemy.
There is still a chance. It's small. It's miniscule. But it's possible.
The NBA, right now, is better than any other sport. If you doubt that, you haven't been watching.
"It's not your father's NBA ... ," wrote Toronto's Globe and Mail newspaper. "This year's model just might be better."
Leave it to the Canadians to get things right.
The larger question is could this miraculous season be the beginning of basketball making a power move past the greatest sport in the world, the NFL?
If basketball can capitalize on its growing number of stars and what could be the best NBA regular season and postseason we have witnessed in many, many years, professional basketball might have the muscle to legitimately challenge what has long been assumed to be the indefatigable NFL.
Here are ten ways it could happen:
10. The league markets Dwight Howard 24/7.
We all know about LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
Yet it's Howard who is one of the rising stars in all of sports. He's a decent guy, has no thug tendencies and possesses great charisma. He reminds me of the NBA version of LaDainian Tomlinson or Warrick Dunn.
Not to mention he could end up being one of the best big men in the past 10 years. He's the kind of interesting personality leagues are built on.
A quick but related aside. If James does somehow end up playing in New York several years from now it would be one of the best things to ever happen to basketball. Imagine a star of his caliber in the media capital of the world.
9. The NBA continues to infuse European talent.
A high-ranking NBA executive recently told me the influx of white Europeans will help attract more white American fans. That's blunt, but it might also be true. It's something that has been stated privately by NBA executives and coaches for several years now.
They speak anecdotally and believe that in places like Germany, European kids are playing basketball far more than white American kids, and this could lead to larger numbers of Europeans playing in the NBA than what we have already seen.
When asked in 2004 if he thought the league lacked white superstars, European or otherwise, the legend Larry Bird answered yes.
"You know, when I played, you had me and Kevin (McHale) and some others throughout the league," Bird said. "I think it's good for a fan base because, as we all know, the majority of the fans are white America. And if you just had a couple of white guys in there, you might get them a little excited."
8. Basketball keeps its faster pace.
Football has more violence, a key component to our enjoyment in watching the NFL. But basketball is becoming perfect for the diminishing attention span of Americans. The games are generally shorter in length than football (and definitely baseball) and feature more wire-to-wire action.
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There is also no question about this: basketball has a steadier stream of high-flying, pure athleticism than football. NFL players are better athletes but basketball games feature better overall acrobatics and jaw-dropping plays.
7. Basketball's simplicity gives it a major advantage over football.
You don't need great expertise to follow the NBA. There are fewer nuances to decipher than in the NFL.
This allows for more involvement and interest from the always-important casual fan who won't be intimidated by the expertise needed to sometimes understand all the intricacies involved in football.
6. The law and order leadership continues.
David Stern has become more like Roger Goodell than Roger Goodell. And that's a good thing. Stern's toughness with his players serves the league well.
5. The NBA keeps taking advantage of the best farm system in sports.
Otherwise known as college basketball. Its players are more recognizable when they enter the NBA than their football counterparts.
4. It nurtures an unbelievable cadre of elite talent.
Basketball's stars are the only ones who can rival the NFL's.
Just to name a few: Howard, Chris Bosh, Tim Duncan, Chris Paul, Bryant, James, Gilbert Arenas, Steve Nash, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, Dwayne Wade, Tracy McGrady, Manu Ginobili and Yao Ming.
3. It keeps performance-enhancing drug issues to a minimum.
At least so far. Steroids nearly destroyed baseball and they continue to hamper football. We're still not seeing mass steroid suspensions in the NBA or star hoopsters testifying before Congress.
2. The NBA's thug image dies while the NFL's grows.
At the All-Star Game in New Orleans I asked Chris Paul about this.
"There was a time when the league may have had an image problem," he said, "but I don't think that's the case now."
That's definitely up for debate, but the issue seems to be more about perception than reality among fans.
Wrote ESPN the Magazine some months ago: "In a recent poll commissioned by The Mag, opinions of the casual fan regarding the NBA suggest significant -- and troubling -- racial stereotyping. Nearly 50 percent of those polled think "it's a shame what's happening to the league" versus 38 percent who feel the same about baseball (even in the wake of the daily steroids headlines) and 21 percent about the NFL (despite the recent doings of Michael Vick and Pacman Jones)."
Such a perception is slowly changing as more good citizens like Paul, James, Howard and others take over the NBA.
1. These NBA playoffs are going to be to basketball what the 1998 home run record chase was to baseball.
Well, not exactly. Few moments in sports history rival that one (even if the moment was steroid infused).
These playoffs still could come close. The first round alone has been stunning. There was the San Antonio-Phoenix double-overtime thriller, great games by Paul, the Philadelphia 76ers upsetting Detroit and the bruising Cleveland-Washington series.
The playoffs will only get better.
The playoffs have generated the kind of buzz and attention not seen since the days of Michael Jordan. The attention is probably bringing in many new fans. If the NBA can keep them and bring in others in the future it could build the sort of momentum leagues dream of.
Can the NBA take on the NFL?
Go ahead and laugh. But it could happen.
