Do you think NBA basketball would benefit with less games? I don't mean the NBA itself, because less games obviously means less profits. I don't have a link to a statistic but I recall someone saying basketball as having the most injuries out of any sport. Injuries have not been decreasing at all over the years. More games means more chances for injury and fatigue that causes injury. Next, wouldn't games be more exciting? Each team would have less games to prove and position themselves into the playoff race. A lot of teams already don't really "bring it" or play their "A game" by this time in the season - not to mention that another month in, the distinction is even more clear as to who is playoff bound and who isn't. Thoughts?
No way - I don't want to have a longer off-season... The NBA has had at least an 80 game season for the past 45 years and I think it's worked out pretty darn well. I like following the team for 6 or 7 months and watching the team evolve throughout the season, the rivalries, the win streaks...
I think they should cut the games down to 72 games, so players have less back-to-back games. Also, playoffs should be cut down to 5 games except for the championship series.
Right now I think the season length is better than both baseball and football. Baseball = way too long, players have to make up bizarre injuries (like falling off exercise bikes) to get some time off football = too short, teams may not play all the other teams in several seasons? thats crazy. The basketball season is nice, plenty of games for fans to go see their team, play all the other teams a few times to really show the better team. I think the injuries are more due to the physical play, no protective gear like football, and the way the game is played forces players to put themselves in dangerous positions like jumping high in a crowd of people moving very fast.
And yet the NBA regular season matters less than the other sports, since more than half the teams make the playoffs anyways. I would keep the season as is, make it an unbalanced schedule so division championships actually matter, and allow LESS teams in the playoffs. Too many teams/players coast during the regular season, and give away games that are rendered meaningless (esp. some of those back-to-back's that a team truly isn't interested in playing).
Whatever happened to that 50 game season when Spurs won the championship? I actually think 82 games is too much. It gets boring after a while. Most of the other teams are horrible, so what's the point? Injuries aside, I don't see that much competition. Just look at the records and standings. And don't get me started on the 2 month long playoffs. Like you mentioned, it would be more fun if each game counted. Baseball has a 182 game season. You would think they have more leverage. How many times have the Astros missed the playoffs by 1 or even .5 games?
playofffs should be cut down for sure. finals should be 7 but others should be 5. but of course nba just wants more money.
I like the 82 games season, I think it's just fine as it is. Hell, I wish these players can play year round, but that's not gonna happen.
I've always found it interesting that the majority of teams make the playoffs. More than half make the playoffs, that's so odd. You would think it's only for the more elite. I think you should play each team twice resulting in a 58 game season with more rest per game but I like the 82 game season. Your team plays every other day basically (with the occasional back-to-backs and 2-day rests) and you can watch when you're done with school/work. They always say the NBA is a marathon, not a sprint. The difference between a playoff game and a regular season game is so great it's awful sometimes BUT the NBA season is made to grind you down. Sometimes it seems too long, especially the playoffs, but that's better for the fans and the office men in the NBA.
That is strange. It would be good if they got the top 6 teams from each conference, 12 out of 30 teams. The top 2 seeds would get byes.
I personally like getting to watch the Rockets every few days. I don't want to wait a week, like waiting for an episode of 24 or something. But most of my friends don't care for the NBA until playoffs time because it's so long. I guess things don't feel 'important' until the last 2 weeks when teams fight for playoff spots.
The length of the season ( in terms of months) doesnt have to change, maybe just spread the games out a bit but cutting ten or so.
It would make the injuries more important. A shorter season could mean that Yao Ming was done for the season. Instead we have time to get him back, and gain our footing before the playoffs.
of course it would benefit, the first part of the season is a joke. Most veterans mail in the pre-season to use the 1st part of the season as a tune up. You can't even blame those guys because they do need rest or they'll break down later. Then there's other guys that say the season doesn't start until after the all star break. They should make the 1st playoff round 5 games again, or consider having less teams in the playoffs. Right now that 1st playoff round is a joke, there's maybe 2 compelling series in a good year.
I thought about that, but it wouldn't work as well in basketball as it does in football. The problem is that in football, you only miss 1 game if you have a bye. In basketball, your opponent could be playing 7 games over the course of 2 weeks while you are sitting around waiting.
Less games mean higher ticket prices, but it doesn't mean better quality play on the court. For a fan who just wants to enjoy the game in person, a shorter season wouldn't help him. It'd also mean the customer would lose out even more should their favorite player be injured. If players were forced to play 100% all the time, then I think the injuries would be the same as a normal schedule. Maybe they'll slack off just as much on a pro rated basis, but that'd mean the quality has decreased proportionately despite it being the same as an 82 game season.
that's exactly how I feel, the majority of the regular season in the NBA is boring as hell. the final 20ish games or so are cool because players take it a lot more seriously, and NBA playoffs are fantastic of course but sheesh, anything before that is just boring. some of you must really be hardcore NBA fans. but I guess it's just a matter of personal perspective...I can't understand how any of you would think football sucks, that's f'in blasphemy. especially here in Texas =P
