There is too much to lose if the NBA season gets cancelled – NBA Lockout Special (Part -4)
What a waste of talent it would be to see Blake Griffin, who made a habit of embarrassing defenders with his posterizing and downright scary jams last season, return with an inability to dominate the basket.
And what an agony will it be to see Kevin Love, the forward who made history last season by eclipsing the consecutive double-double record and by recording a 30-30 game after 27 years, return without his groove.
A little shift of focus to the teams in general turns one’s attention to clubs like the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Detroit Pistons – all franchise which have just hired new coaches. What
are Mark Jackson, Mike Brown, Rick Adelman and Lawrence Frank expected to do while the game is at a standstill. It will only create further pressure on them in the following season.
Teams such as the Memphis Grizzlies, Philadelphia 76ers and the Oklahoma City Thunder made good progress last season and would be desperate to continue building on the development they have made. A year’s gap could so easily throw
them back to the bottom of the pits; they did so well to rise from.
Then there is an issue of NBA’s popularity, which reached new heights after the exhilarating NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat. NBA is already not the most followed American Sport and what little ground it
had made in the last decade, will be lost if there is no NBA season.
However, that apparently does not make a difference, either to the NBA owners or the players. All they want is money and secure future. What the fans want is on the tip of their shoes.
If we picture a scenario where the owners win, then we are in for a totally revamped NBA system. The salaries of players will decrease, the concept of free agents will no more remind anyone of the Wild West and trading of players
is expected to become an even more arduous procedure. In short, the financial system will be completely overhauled.
If players win the debate, then it will back to the old system with some minor changes. The only difference will be less respect for the players. However, I do not thinks that really matters to them – Does it?
Even if the owners or the players get their wish and things get resolved, it is not to say that the NBA will be the same as we left it last year. The question is not whether it will be better or worse, it is more along the lines
of whether you are ready to embrace the new NBA or not?
The bottom line is that no NBA fan wants to see the season get cancelled and they have every right to demand that the issue be resolved as soon as possible. After all, it is the fans that run the league, not the players or the
owners.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article do not represent Bettor.com’s editorial policy.
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