“The NBA Playoffs: I used to love it a lot more”
by Marquis Parker

“Basketball is my favorite sport
I love the way they dribble up and down the court”
- Kurtis Blow, “Basketball”

As the first line from Kurtis Blow’s hip-hop classic basketball describes, basketball is truly my favorite sport. I started watching it in elementary school and have been a fan ever since. Because the highest level of competition in the sport is played in the NBA, it’s only natural that I would become a huge fan of “The League”. From the highs of Michael, Scottie, and the Bulls twin sets of 3-peats to the lows of Magic’s announcement of his HIV status, I have been in front of my television enjoying the exhibitions put on by the greatest athletes in the world.

Michael Jordan and father with the NBA Championship trophy after his first title

Like most NBA fans, I eagerly await the Playoffs that follow the 82-game regular season and result in the crowning of the NBA Championship team of the year. That is the best time to watch The League because the players step up their game in the pursuit of a championship ring and every game carries great significance. In years past, the Playoffs have produced all-time great moments, such as Michael Jordan’s gutsy, flu-ridden 38-point performance in Game 5 of the 1997 Finals, Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins’ shootout in the 1988 Eastern Conference semi-finals, and Jerry West’s half-court shot at the closing buzzer of the 1970 Finals Game 2 that sent the contest into overtime, but, in recent years, I haven’t been excited about the arrival of this time as I used to be. One of the reasons for this change is that I’m getting older and have other life issues to tackle, but I believe that the NBA’s post-season has lost its luster for a number of reasons. The following is just a short list of issues that I have with the NBA Playoffs nowadays:

1. The first round is too long
A couple of seasons ago, the NBA changed the format of the first playoff round from best-of-five to best-of-seven in an attempt to add several millions of dollars into the league. A side effect of this move is that the first round now has the potential to feel like it is taking forever and a day to end. Ten years ago, the higher ranked team would usually eliminate its first round series opponent in three or four games and, in the occasional time that a lower-ranked team would put up a good fight, the five-game length of the series made for a very exciting competition. Now, with seven-game series, the first round just seems to drag on in many cases. Sure, there are times when a team will eliminate its opponent with a 4-0 or 4-1, but there is always at least one matchup that goes six or seven games, which leads to the rest of the Playoffs taking longer. I understand the desire to give teams more time to potentially take over a first round series. I understand the Leagues desire to bring in more revenue. I understand the desire to give more fans more chances to see their favorite teams in the Playoffs. But, what I don’t understand is how the NBA didn’t realize that this new structure could bore some of its hardcore fans like myself.

2. Within rounds, the games are too spread apart
Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like these playoff rounds are taking forever to finish. I remember the days when the first and second rounds of the Playoffs would fly by because the higher seeded team was far better than the lower seeded squad. Today’s NBA has become watered down due to several factors, including expansion, younger draft entrants, and increasingly active free agency. The resulting parity among the teams in the league makes for exciting regular season games because either team in a match-up could win on a given night, but creates the potential for long drawn out playoff series in which the teams go back and forth for six or seven games. A full 7-game series currently lasts 17 days, which can seem like a lifetime to a fan eagerly awaiting the Finals. In a recent AP report, Commissioner David Stern acknowledged this problem and said that he plans to make changes to the post-season starting next year that will address this problem. For me, the best part of the Playoffs are the Conference Finals and the League Finals, so I’d just like to see the early rounds finish as quickly as possible.

3. The ESPN/ABC telecasts are sub-par
At the conclusion of the 2001-2002 NBA season, the League’s long-time contract with NBC ended and it was looking for a huge payday upon renewal of the contract. Unfortunately, NBC was not willing to meet the NBA’s target figure and the League signed a new, lucrative deal with ESPN/ABC to give those networks the rights to broadcast games (the total contract was a 4-year, $4.6 billion deal with ESPN/ABC and TNT)…I, along with many other fans, believe that this was the worst move that could have been made. The “NBA on NBC” telecasts were fantastic and had everything that a fan could want: a great theme song, knowledgeable and charismatic in-studio and courtside personalities (Bob Costas, Steve “Snapper” Jones, and Ahmad Rashad), a good collection of game, team, and player stats.

From the beginning, the ESPN/ABC broadcasts offered strong statistics, but fell short everywhere else. The on-air talent for these telecasts was decent, but there were several notable low-lights, such as Sal Masekela (who looks like a reject from the Baja Men), Tim Hardaway (the WORST basketball commentator EVER), and Bill Walton (he’s even unbearable without Snapper Jones at his side to balance him out). The new broadcasts lacked energy and watching a game on ESPN or ABC became akin to a chore that had to be done but was close to unbearable. It got to the point where I stopped watching NBA games unless they were TNT productions. Things have improved this year, but they still have a long way to go. Also, the move to ESPN/ABC shifted the majority of games to cable, which shut out a large portion of the NBA’s fan base that don’t have cable service. I recognize that the change to ESPN/ABC was financially beneficial to the NBA, but more thought should have been given to the quality of broadcasts that would be presented to its fans.

4. The West Coast games run too late
I enjoy watching all of the NBA teams play, but, when the post-season comes, every NBA fan knows that the best series are played in the Western Conference. The West has the strongest teams, most superstars, and most heated rivalries, so all of their series, including those in the first round, are exciting. Unfortunately, I live in the Washington D.C. area, so I’m usually ready to go to sleep when those Western Conference games are just going into halftime and many of those games don’t end until around 1:00 AM EST. In fact, one of the games in the recent Timberwolves-Kings series (which I must say was one of the most exciting playoff series I’ve ever seen) didn’t end until 2:00 AM EST. For those of us on the East Coast (and also in the Central Standard Time area), this situation needs to be changed. To his credit, Commissioner Stern recognizes this as a problem and has vowed to make some changes for next year’s post-season. I hope these changes come sooner than later because the low scoring defensive battles that take place in the Eastern Conference won’t be enough to keep those of us east of the Mississippi River excited forever.

I hope this doesn’t make me sound like a disgruntled fan because I still love NBA basketball. But, as a young man who grew up during the Magic, Bird, and Jordan era, I’d just like to see the current incarnation of The League step up and reach its former glory. A lot of money is funneled into and out of the NBA and Commissioner Stern needs to be mindful of issues like those listed above to ensure that he’s giving his fans the best experience possible since the post-season is when ticket and merchandise prices skyrocket and The League brings in a huge amount revenue. If Stern’s not careful, he may see some of his hardcore fans (like myself) start focusing on college basketball or other sports…I’d hate to see the NBA fall off like the NHL has over the past 10 years.

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