NBA showing signs of problems with competitive sports

It's guys being paid millions of dollars to play a game for children. Kids aren't going to stop trying to get straight A's because Kobe took 50 shots in his last game. It's entertainment...get over yourself.

 

Our system from 30-40 years ago (socialism/communism) had the "play hard/work hard" mentality, and it worked out great as nobody made big profit out of your dedication and it brought masses together on a national level.
Now, masses are divided as much as ever, with individualism being king; players are canceling their participations for NT squads left and right. Corporations are profiting like crazy from best athletes and players are being paid too much.

I Will teach my kids to work hard only for themselves.

 

I think you're overreacting. I doubt Harden and Doncic particularly care about PotW awards, because they're insignificant. You could make an argument over Player of the Month being Carmelo (if the numbers remain the same), but I doubt players would care about that either.

And iirc, Dirk and Wade were named to the AS team last season, but not by taking away a spot from someone who would otherwise be more deserving. I think they were just added to the team.

Also, every legendary player?? Kobe was the only one who really got one. Duncan and Dirk went quietly into the night. Vince Carter thanked Houston in a postgame interview, and I don't think it's acknowledged on a game-by-game basis that he's retiring. Not everyone is getting the Kobe treatment.

 

Also, I'm not sure if Utah would have made the playoffs even if they had won in Kobe's last game, so if they wouldn't have, regardless of outcome, you're just crying over spilled milk.

 

Athletes with high salaries are exemption to the rule. They work hard and get payed handsomely.

 

I don't understand this sentence, the one I bolded. Do you live outside of the United States? Like in Eastern Europe?

Check that. Probably not a question to ask here. Wrong forum. I will say that Harden works his butt off.

 

Yes, I'm from Slovenia. If I compare sports between systems - players 30 years ago couldn't wait to play for national team and they played hard because of national pride.
Now? About a third of guys either don't play because of contracts, or they play to raise their value.
The reason for playing hard changed.

 

Thanks for the explanation. I want to visit your country!

Sorry for going off the reservation a little, but you made me think of when I visited Yugoslavia in 1971, when Tito was still in power. Met a guy while riding the train on the way to Greece at the end of March, and he invited us to stay at his Mom's place in Belgrade. I know Slovenia is vastly different and I'd love to go there. It's on our bucket list. It's beautiful, much different from the rest of the former Yugoslavia, and inexpensive. Belgrade in '71? It was crazy. Snow everywhere (I came from Houston, where it snowed maybe every 10 years, even less now), big Soviet style apartment blocks. I was with a chick and we had a really strange experience. We went to a disco in there, and I hated disco, yet we had a great time. Great music on the radio at the guy's apartment. Better than the disco stuff. The locals crossed the street rather than walk past a Gypsy on a sidewalk, I saw it happen, yet they loved their music. Go figure.

 

It's just a miserable Player of the Week award.

No sleep lost over this.

Sure, the generations are getting softer and softer. You got to get back to more rigid education.

The Super Max should get canned. No more 40+ million contracts a year.

 

I completely, yet disagree with most of what you said.

Every major sports league competition is as high as ever, especially in the last 25 to 30. Baseball, Basketball, Football, Hockey, Tennis, Soccer, and etc.

Youth participation is declining, but it's still pretty high. Every league is so competitive know that any team amongst the 50% to even 70% has a shot at winning. It's the last generation kids who are these leagues, so wealthy and competitive.


The gap between the elite players and slightly above average kids has shrunk alot. Because, they are damn playing sports year round or training for nearly the entire.


The participation trophy "phenomenon," is such an overblown Boomer, right leaning paranoia. If "participation trophy" mentality is so, why are there so many kids and pro athletes who use PEDS, pain-killers, or falsify records to go to a good, out of district school. Which is a "culture of winning at all cost," that can be just as bad as participation trophies. Why do some many teams try to cheat to begin with, that kills the purpose of the "participation trophy" off the bat.


"Everyone is special." Yeah, we really go out of our way to celebrate players, like Brian Cook, Rafer Alston, or Rex Grossman. Or, those crappy D-II programs, who most top 25 teams have no business playing. Hell, most of the time, we don't even acknowledge high school teams or players unless it's LeBron or Kobe type players,maybe our local high school teams. Most people I reckon don't if they don't have kids in the school or powerhouse. More times than not, those players take the abuse, because they are noticeably mediocre compared to the elite players or the overall superbly "talented" teams. Yet, we still like to see underdog players or teams succeed, because it makes thing more exciting: Against all Odds, David vs. Goliath.

To some, Kobe is arguably the greatest NBA player, easily to many, the best of his generation. He is 5x NBA champ and should have 4 to 6 MVP trophies. A farewell tour is the least we could do. He scored 81 points in a game. He could be the most competitive pro player ever. Could score 40-60 on any given night.

Dirk is arguably a top 5 power forward ever, as well as being one of the greatest shooters in NBA history. One of the first German-born players to be an NBA superstar. He played at a superstar level for 15 NBA seasons, that's remarkable.

These guys are star players, because they are 'exceptional' talents and beloved all over the world. Wade, Pierce, KG, and etc, you want our fans to honor great players and be informed about the game's history. These guys are all alpha competitor.

You got me defending, "Melo." Carmelo is not some "blow-joe basketball .' He's also an all time great, many of his fans and other NBA followers say that the guy was blackballed, which has some credence to it. He's still a "...once in a lifetime talent with quite a resume."

 

I love Belgrade. People are still great there, even against all the corruption that's happening in their country. Their average salary is something like 300-400 US dollars...
I think you'd love Slovenia. If you or any other Rockets fan get here, send me a PM, I'd love to show you around or just give a few tips.

 

Hey, Rafer Alston was pretty competitive in streetball......a legend. Not team basketball.

I mean, being great at one competition is enough IMO.

 

Ljubljana is seriously overlooked. It's all the best of Europe in one city.