Basketball from a
fan’s perspective
”Who are those guys?”
We’ve discussed the 1969 western movie classic Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. At least two points in the movie a posse is chasing the two outlaws and Cassidy (Paul Newman) or Sundance (Robert Redford) take turns uttering the sentence; 'Who are those guys?' Sunday’s starting lineup contained only one guy from the past playoff and championship teams, Draymond Green. ESPN's Power Rankings on Monday list the Warriors at number 30, how the mighty have fallen. Injuries have wrecked whatever hope the Warriors had of at least earning a playoff berth.
That's the downside of this issue, you say there might be an upside to this debacle? Free agency, possible trades and draft choices lie in the future for the Warriors. Is that immediate future satisfactory for Dub Nation accustom to winning consistently? Insert patience at this point in the conversation, take this from a Lakers fan whose suffered for the past 6 seasons. Where are the Lakers in the above mentioned power rankings? How about number one, see there is light at the end of the tunnel. There is a bright future if Warriors management plays their cards correctly.
Showtime II
Kobe Bryant was at Staples Center for the game against the Hawks, Laker past and Laker present LeBron James greeted one another during a lull in game action. This fan is cautiously optimistic, the Clippers are yet to play Kawhi Leonard and Paul George together. The Celtics have started the season much faster than many expected. What can I say about the 2019-20 Lakers, after years of below average seasons the team is playing at a high skill level? Thanks to LeBron James, AD and company they have returned to the play we remember from The Forum and later Staples Center.
Kobe Bryant was at Staples Center for the game against the Hawks, Laker past and Laker present LeBron James greeted one another during a lull in game action. This fan is cautiously optimistic, the Clippers are yet to play Kawhi Leonard and Paul George together. The Celtics have started the season much faster than many expected. What can I say about the 2019-20 Lakers, after years of below average seasons the team is playing at a high skill level? Thanks to LeBron James, AD and company they have returned to the play we remember from The Forum and later Staples Center.
NBA teams can all score the ball, what
most don’t do very good is defend. This
is most exciting for me this Lakers team plays great team defense, the Magic
lead the league with 99.9 points a game, behind them are the Jazz at 100.2 and
the Lakers 100.6. I must continue
to remind myself the NBA season is a marathon not a sprint. In closing this is for Laker fans, don’t go
overboard, I know you (and me) are pleased with the team’s play. We have months and months of season remaining
prior to even begin thinking about the playoffs, final score Lakers 122 Hawks 101.
The television history
The NFL is celebrating anniversary number 100 in 2019, despite the years the league did not become the national pastime many claim until 1958. NFL Network games had been telecast however many believe the championship game that year broadcast on television move into another realm. We could make a similar statement regarding the NBA however unlike the NFL we cannot point to date or year; television was a key component of the league’s growth in popularity. History informs us the first national telecast of an NBA game began in the 1953-54 season with the defunct Dumont Television Network.
The NFL is celebrating anniversary number 100 in 2019, despite the years the league did not become the national pastime many claim until 1958. NFL Network games had been telecast however many believe the championship game that year broadcast on television move into another realm. We could make a similar statement regarding the NBA however unlike the NFL we cannot point to date or year; television was a key component of the league’s growth in popularity. History informs us the first national telecast of an NBA game began in the 1953-54 season with the defunct Dumont Television Network.
Television was still in its infancy back
then, due to the limited number of stations the following season NBA broadcasts
were moved to the NBC Network. NBC would
hold the NBA broadcast rights until 1962.
Over the next few years broadcast moved between ABC, CBS, and back to the
NBC Network once again. Viewership
exploded during NBC tenures and it probably had little to do with the network,
Michael Jordan and his Bulls came to the forefront and became an outstanding team
for the network to telecast.
In the 2002-03 season ABC once again became
the broadcast partner, a few years earlier with the advent of cable and
satellite television broadcast rights were extended to the USA Network and
later TNT along with ESPN. The NBA began
broadcasting its exclusive brand with the introduction of NBA TV. So now NBA games are available on an
assortment of platforms including streaming. The number of foreign networks is
too extensive to list however we can say with certainty. There is likely nowhere in the world you
cannot witness NBA games, you might be forced to rise early in the morning, but
they are likely available.
Bits n Pieces
Speaking of television, we are there, that time of the year basketball coverage dominates our sets. In the instance of college, we are talking early April as for the NBA it’s the middle of June. Games will be available for us to view every weeknight, Saturday afternoon and evening. This same scenario plays out on Sunday once the college and NFL seasons conclude…don’t you just love it?
The expectation is the hope he’s a clone of his older brother, i.e. Giannis. That might be the sentiment of Laker fans toward Kostas Antetokounmpo who will turn 22 years old in November. Based on his recent past he’s experienced one run of the mill collegiate season at Dayton University. In 2018 the Mavs made him the 60th pick in the second round of the draft, in July 2019 Kostas was waived by the Mavs and the Lakers signed him 3 days later. The Lakers hope he becomes his brother however they could have unrealistic expectations. Although he’s still currently on the roster he’s likely to spend the majority of the 2019-20 season with the South Bay Lakers; this season might be the ultimate test on his future.
Speaking of television, we are there, that time of the year basketball coverage dominates our sets. In the instance of college, we are talking early April as for the NBA it’s the middle of June. Games will be available for us to view every weeknight, Saturday afternoon and evening. This same scenario plays out on Sunday once the college and NFL seasons conclude…don’t you just love it?
The expectation is the hope he’s a clone of his older brother, i.e. Giannis. That might be the sentiment of Laker fans toward Kostas Antetokounmpo who will turn 22 years old in November. Based on his recent past he’s experienced one run of the mill collegiate season at Dayton University. In 2018 the Mavs made him the 60th pick in the second round of the draft, in July 2019 Kostas was waived by the Mavs and the Lakers signed him 3 days later. The Lakers hope he becomes his brother however they could have unrealistic expectations. Although he’s still currently on the roster he’s likely to spend the majority of the 2019-20 season with the South Bay Lakers; this season might be the ultimate test on his future.
