I think this can be a interesting read. Any thoughts?
"After a one month hiatus because of my strenuous but somewhat enjoyable summer job at Park Slope Day Camp, I am back at posting articles. Of course, all of you were definitely expecting a brief, lackluster, and derivative article on either the MLB trading deadline, or how the Mets will win the World Series, or how why they will finish 3rd in the National League East.
But instead, I will list the top 10 things I would change in the NBA today, while providing detailed solutions. There will be two parts to this, 10-6 and 5-1.
Enjoy!
10. Move the NBA coverage to NBC.
ABC/ESPN has done a below average job of broadcasting the NBA. The camera angles are flat out awful; they focus more on the celebrities in the stands; and for a Knicks and Red Storm fan, this is tough to say, but the Jeff Van Gundy/Mark Jackson combination is simply mediocre. The “floor cam†or whatever they call it gives me a headache and sometimes makes me change the channel, no matter how good the game. And the last time I checked, the NBA Finals were between the Celtics and Lakers, not a TMZ celebrity event. They had an entire one minute clip of all the celebrities in LA, and even minimized the game on the TV screen to show them! How ridiculous is that! An NBA FINALS GAME and they minimize the GAME to show people sitting down! Let’s also not forget last year’s finals with Eva Longoria, who they featured, it seemed, every five seconds!
Now to the broadcasting … Although Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson are guys I wouldn’t mind hanging out with, or wouldn’t mind working on the St. John’s sidelines together, I’m not sure they are a match made in heaven for the broadcasting booth. Van Gundy is decent and someone I can live with, although he’s got some flaws and his constant preaching of the “7th foul rule†idea on every broadcast is annoying. Jackson’s the guy I got a problem with. He is simply not that good. His “You’re better than that ____!†cliché gets old quickly, and his jokes about Van Gundy are not that amusing. Jackson also gets caught talking about intangibles that he cannot prove or disprove because they are intangibles, rather then talking about X’s and O’s. Although they are fine when talking about their past professions, I don’t think they do it enough. They are relatively new to television so I’ll give them a slight pass, but a upgrade would be nice.
Give me normal functional cameras that only focus on the game, along with a more experienced broadcasting crew, and I’m set. Let’s also not forget the best intro music of all time …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fErMdMN-rGg9. Resolve the Oklahoma City and New Jersey situations.
A. Give Seattle two years to come up with an arena plan.
B. If there’s no proof of Clay Bennett wholeheartedly trying to resolve the arena situation, he will be forced to sell the team.
C. Do not let Oklahoma City receive a NBA franchise until their practice faculty situation is resolved. Once it is, they are on top of the list when it comes to moving a team there.
D. Help Bruce Ratner and the rest of the New Jersey Nets owners to move the team to Brooklyn.
I think what the NBA did to the fans in Seattle is absolutely disgusting. It was obvious that Clay Bennett had no interest in keeping the Sonics in Seattle. Just think about it: he’s from Oklahoma City; he then states the only way there will be a new Seattle arena (or renovated Key Arena) is if the public funds the complete cost of $600 million (knowing full well they had paid for new Mariners and Seahawks stadiums over the past ten years). Then he gives the city of Seattle no time to come up with an alternative to his plan and immediately lets David Stern know about his intentions of moving. Add all of that with the emails released to the public and it’s obvious that Bennett did not try to keep the team in Seattle. The NBA should have realized this, and given the city of Seattle until 2010 (when the current arena lease expires) to come up with a plan which would be acceptable to David Stern, the fans, and the team’s owner. Seattle is a tremendous American city with a rich NBA history, and most importantly with a passionate fan base (only being in the bottom five of fan attendance once since 2002-2003. That year was this year). If it’s really an impossible situation and Oklahoma City has their practice facility situation figured out, they are awarded the Seattle SuperSonics.
The state of New Jersey is not fit for a team. Most of their fans are from New York City anyway, so to put a team in NYC makes plenty of sense. Living in Brooklyn, I know that people will go to the games, and that it will help the NBA, the borough, and the franchise tremendously. If I were David Stern I would try to resolve the housing situation in the proposed arena site – even if that means helping to fund housing for the displaced families. It would be worth it. As long as the Nets long term plan does not include Newark or New Jersey, I’m fine with it.
8. Fans vote for Slam Dunk participants
This was the first real no brainer for me personally. I mean seriously, when fans of the NBA want to see a Slam Dunk competition, do they dream of seeing the bench warmer for the Minnesota Timberwolves (Gerald Green), a player who was in the NBDL a year prior (Jamario Moon), and the leading scorer of the Memphis Grizzlies (Rudy Gay)? Yeah, I didn’t think so. I think along with the ballot for the All-Star Game, should be a ballot for the Slam Dunk competitors. Fans should be allowed to vote for two players to join the slam dunk competition. There would also be two reserved spots: one would be saved for last year’s winner and the other for the commissioner’s choice.
If I were commissioner, I would also make a clause in every NBA contract that if the player participates in the slam dunk contest, the NBA will pay $25,000 to a charity of the player’s choice.
This equation of peer pressure, helping a good cause, and giving fans a good time, will motivate players to join the competition. Just for giggles, my dream slam dunk competition would include Dwight Howard, Lebron James, Amare Stoudmire, Vince Carter and Andre Iguodala.
7. Saving a franchise pt 2: Atlanta Hawks.
A. Send a notice to everyone in the Atlanta Hawks ownership group (Atlanta Spirit, LLC and Nintendo of America, and Governor Michael Gearon) directing them to get their act together.
B. If they do not, by the 2010 season, there will be a vote on whether to keep the Atlanta Hawks franchise in the NBA and/or in Atlanta.
This is my first real “out of the box†idea so far, but I think it’s something that’s got to be addressed. The Atlanta Hawks are a franchise that has no commitment to winning, and seems to only care about making money. Since the 2002-2003 season, the only year they were not in the bottom five of attendance was this year (every year the Clippers were in the Top 20). That proves they don’t care if fans are in the seats. They let Josh Childress go to Greece and are now trying to low ball a 22 year-old player with an enormous upside and skill set named Josh Smith. I think it’s obvious they are trying to cheat their fans and the NBA by not spending money to be competitive. If I were commissioner and saw the trend of a losing record, miserable attendance, and not actively trying to sign players for the money they deserve, I would send a notice to every part owner of the franchise letting them know, they have until 2010 to turn the franchise around, both economically and on the court. If I do not see substantial progress or, more importantly, effort, I would order a vote among the other owners to determine rather or not the Hawks should remain in the NBA and in Atlanta. If it is voted that they should not continue in Atlanta and that they need new owners, then Michael Gearon will be stripped of majority ownership, and the NBA will own the team for one year. From there, it will go up to the highest bidder and they will be free to move the team. Enough is enough.
6. New age limit and rookie scales in NBA.
A. A player with a high school degree and 18 years of age should be qualified to enter the NBA Draft. Players, who do not enter the NBA draft out of high school, must wait at least two years before entering again.
B. European born players who enter the draft and have played in a professional league for over 4 years will still be subject to the rookie scale, but will receive a signing bonus of 25% of their first year contract. (The bonus would not count against the cap.)
C. American players who enter the draft with an undergraduate degree from an American university will still be subject to the rookie scale, but will receive a signing bonus of 50% of their first year contract. (The bonus would not count against the cap.)
This is one of the hottest issues in the NBA today. Everyone’s talking about it. It has obsessed fans on message boards, commentators on television and the radio, and even high school and college coaches and players across the world. I feel my solution helps everyone out.
Clause A will let the Michael Beasleys of the world enter the league without having to use the NCAA as a pit stop on the way to an inevitable NBA career. It will also stop the “one and done†craze which has hurt some players and has frustrated coaches and fans. (I’m looking at you, Donte Greene, DeAndre Jordan, Bill Walker, and Davon Jefferson.) It will let players who are not polished enough both mentally and physically improve for two years.
Clause B gives extra incentive for European born players who have played overseas for four years or more to come to the NBA. Just look at the Olympics. Some of the world’s best talent is in Europe. Enticing them can lead to a more competitive NBA.
Clause C gives an extra incentive for players to get an education. It’s something that I feel can really help these players. It now won’t be a huge risk to stay for four years because they are getting more guaranteed money than the other draftees. I feel something like this can motivate some players to stay one more year, enjoy their college days, and truly mature both physically and mentally. Just think about this as someone going for a job interview. One person’s straight out of high school and the other has an undergraduate degree from Duke: whom will you pay more to? Hopefully you picked the guy from Duke…
All of these clauses only help the players and fans, and do not hurt the teams at all. I feel something like this is a near flawless proposal.
The next part will be out sometime early next week. Some subjects that will be included are the playoffs, draft and salary cap. … I hope you enjoyed.
Dylan"
Any thoughts on the article would be appericated. Thanks.