I only watch the Rockets and I really only catch a handful of games throughout the year, but I will tune in for playoff games. It's crazy to think I used to watch every game of the season back in the day. In general, and ignoring the "fixed" argument, the games have a poor flow that make it difficult to watch. It's supposed to be a fluid game, and it has become a herky-jerky mess. Granted, some of this could be attributed to the Rockets in particular, but most NBA games are bogged down by whistles, free throws and timeouts and commercials (the last 2 minutes of the game should not take 25 minutes to complete). Throw in some flopping, whining and half-assed effort and it's a recipe for a poor product. Interestingly enough, refs do dictate a lot of the poor qualities of the game i mentioned above. There needs to be a fundamental change in how things are done because currently, the league makes it more difficult to watch than not. Growing up, my dad would always say things like the 'game is rigged', or 'all you need to do is watch the 4th quarter'. It used to tick me off, but now he sure does seem right. I wonder what it would be like for fouls to be logged and whistled but the game continues to play. At the end of the quarter, you assess fouls and shoot free throws accordingly. Maybe in the 4th quarter you shoot as they are called...who knows. But something has to change.
I think im starting to agree that its fixed . However , if this is the case , then i think Tilman might just be the perfect owner for us to win. He's got that mob mentality and is willing to play the long game. I dont know if MDA or morey has it in them to get dirty . Tilman will get dirty . If he's not raising a stink now ... its cause he's biding his time. Plus , hes gotta make money to put himself in a position to make more moves. Sometimes you can get lucky and win , especially in a wide open year. I feel like this year would have been wide open , but DM's china **** up really hurt us , corona and the league needing to max profits more than ever before prolly bones us. it prolly boned MIL a bit too haha , i mean Giannis didnt get half his normal call. James is at about 25 % . Lebron 110% I think if its fixed TIlman has to know for sure , Morey has to know for sure . There would be math and stats backing it up at this point . The eye test can certainly yield positive results . We have the Sac-LA series of 02 . Money is involved to keep the status quo and keep owners quiet. If you expose the NBA you devalue your own team. TIlman is a mob and gambling guy tho is he not ? and NBA rules around gambling are loosening up right ? online betting and such . We could be in a position of power . It might be with harden it might not be. Harden can win one late like with Dirk. Or we could win now if we get lucky idk.
I don't remember where I first heard about league officials meeting with the head of NBA Supervisor Official and then the NBA supervisor Official meeting with the Group Supervisor who then meets with the other officials. Typically it is done in hotels where the referees are staying to call the game. The league as of a couple of years ago was sending tape to the Group Supervisor to have the officials review. I have heard Joey Crawford and Bob Delaney both discuss it in the past. Not in the context of "the league tells us what to say" but in the context of the heirarchy of information going into playoffs games. The official reasoning of the NBA is that knowing the officiating can move the gambling line. My response to that is there shouldn't be much of a difference from referee to referee so it should not matter. Besides, teams should be able to know what to expect. As for Chris Paul.... it is coincidence that Paul complains and gets a delay of game against Minnesota...... and the next game he has two delay of games called against him, and then is teased by Foster in game 7 and in the head of the game gets a delay of game? Not buying it personally.
After this series is over with a Mike Dantoni 7 man Rotation. I hope the Rockets give a huge contract to Gregg Popovich.
The nba is certainly rigged, but not how OP said. It is mainly a league of farm teams and the blessed. Toronto won last year because they were willing to do anything for one ring. The agents control this league. Adam silver doesn't care where players get drafted because he knows that it's a 7-year waiting before that player becomes a star enough to win a championship.
Should I even be Rockets, Astros Fan anymore the way the Commissioners Adam Silver and Rob Manfred are hating and screwing my teams with Referees and Umpires screwing us. Yes Yankees Cheat by using cameras to steal signs first the Letter the Judge ordered the Commissioner Rob Manfred is still hasnt been open. LeBron James does Cheat the Game by using Steroids.
I used to watch wrestling even though I knew it was fixed, too. As long as they didn't get too crazy, I was cool with it as entertainment. But then Vince McMahon and the NBA took it too far with their inane storylines, so I gave up on it. I lost a lot of love for the NBA once the Tim Donaghy stuff broke, but I still watch it. I just don't know if it means as much to me anymore, though. Don't let your sports and wrestling mix, Mr. Silver.
For me, it isn't "the league is fixed". I don't know, I'm guessing they guide it in direction to an extent... maybe. I do think some of it is partially because we just accept some of the stupidest things. My biggest pet-peeve about fandom is we say things like "oh, they call the game differently in the playoffs" or "when the playoffs roll around, they won't be able to get away with that". Do you ever stop and think "uh, why?" Why the hell isn't the game called the same way in the playoffs. At times it's like "y'all play 82 games this way" and then we're just gonna make you play however we want because "the playoffs are different". Yet somehow as fans and whatever else, we just accept that as some kind of badge of honor.
NBA is not fixed, that's a ridiculous statement / theory / idea. Rigged to a degree, ow 100%. But we shouldn't be surprised. It's clearly an entertainment product that is run like a criminal organisation where people have limited freedom, though slowly getting more and taking control over their fate, and criticism is met by serious repercussions. I think fans should just admit and recognise that having certain teams advance or at least a series extended is in the best interest of the league, brings in the $$$$ and therefore part of the game. Same goes for all these lenient traveling rules, not calling 3 seconds, rewarding flopping etc. There's zero doubt in my mind this league is not integer from a competitive standpoint and any attempt to appear so is just a shame and for show, like the flopping fines. We just have to accept it.
You guys literally contradict yourselves. It's like watching someone's inner monologue accept their fate.
The NBA, like all sports leagues, have a financial responsibility to its board/owners to generate revenue. Having LeBron and the Lakers get to the Finals is a surefire way of keeping interest/attention on the league. It's by no accident that the league and its sponsors want Giannis to be the face of the NBA so bad despite his obvious flaws because they need to keep the money train going. He's young, he's got personality, he dunks a lot, etc. Plus he is a piece that will potentially move to a bigger market team. Is the league fixed? I wouldn't say it's direct and obvious but to dismiss the idea that there's an invisible hand of the league moving the pieces in order to grow interest/attention/revenue is being naive.
To add onto what I said: there's a reason why NBA refs are paid like they're surgeons with the most seasoned refs making half a million a season and that reason isn't because they're job is hard.
