IBC

I have to assume that when a sports fan makes a change or a leap as big as the one I'm making, the only thing he can do is go in front of the biggest sports fans he knows and take his licks... so go ahead anf make fun. here go.

I am a Lakers fans.

after going to two games at staples and watching a few more at the bar with my buddies, its official.

I've never really had an nba team to root for, I've always just kind of followed the local team wherever I was, so I guess this makes sense.

I told a bunch of you earlier this year that for some reason the nba really interested me this season. that NEVER happens. but, for some reason, this year it did. the only thing that sucked was not having a team to really root for.

well, now I do. I know its a bandwagon jump and I'm fine with that. no excuses. but I love watching them play and going to staples is a blast, despite being expensive.

so, there it is. I'm a lakers fan. despite their stupid nickname.

Being the age you are, how did you pick up the Cubs and not the Bulls?

Being a Cubs fan wasn't a local thing, it was passed down from my grandfather to me. Its a family thing.

I did love the Bulls as a kid though, weirdly enough. But that was all just the fun of watching Michael Jordan.

Fair enough. Laker fans are generally bandwagon jumping transplants anyway, so you should fit right in. Just don't put any of those flags on your car.

The Lakers' nickname makes a whole heck of a lot more sense if they were back in Minnesota where they belonged and where there are, you know, lakes.

You mean kind of like the Utah Jazz?

I'm ashamed. I really am. I thought that we both swore off the NBA forever after Reggie Miller retired. Now, you not only go back to the NBA, but you pick the Lakers? How are we friends again? I bet you're a USC fan come fall

I think making a cat a facebook is much more making-fun worthy than rooting for an NBA team

I'd be more embarrased just being a NBA fan than a Lakers fan.

Athletics wrote:Fair enough. Laker fans are generally bandwagon jumping transplants anyway, so you should fit right in. Just don't put any of those flags on your car.

I think we need to all chip in and buy gabe one of those flags...

Mets wrote:I'd be more embarrased just being a NBA fan than a Lakers fan.

Right, I mean, it's not like this is the most talented the NBA's been since the early 90's.

Oh no wait, it is...

You watch one game that LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Kevin Garnett/Paul Pierce/Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Derrick Rose, Tim Duncan, Chris Bosh, Yao Ming, Brandon Roy, Carmelo Anthony/Chauncey Billups, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaq/Nash, Kevin Durant, etc etc etc play and tell me the level of talent (and caring about winning) isn't at a two decade high.

I love the passion and intensity of college basketball - and, for a while in the late 90's and early 00's it was actually BETTER basketball than the NBA. Right now, though, the NBA is a FAR superior product.

My wife works with the NBA a lot, so I'm probably too close to the way they market their sport, and their thinking.

High scoring, lots of drama, little defense, superstar players getting traded every 1.5 years...don't even know whose on what team anymore....Talent aside, the NBA has become more Oceans 14 than Slumdog Millionaire.

Haven't been a baseketball fan since Ewing-Starks-Oakley days....bring back the thugs. While the NBA and almost everyone on this board will disagree, I prefer a knock down, drag out 92-88 game...But that's probably the NYC playground pick up game in me, that I grew up with. Very turned off by the flashy ness that the NBA has turned into, where the players are bigger than the teams.

Mets wrote:Talent aside, the NBA has become more Oceans 14 than Slumdog Millionaire.

Outside of her fantastic body, beautiful face, and incredible legs, Megan Fox is really ugly.

I watch the NBA pretty religiously - if you can't appreciate the basketball that's being played there now, you aren't a basketball fan.

Mets wrote:Haven't been a baseketball fan since Ewing-Starks-Oakley days....bring back the thugs. While the NBA and almost everyone on this board will disagree, I prefer a knock down, drag out 92-88 game...But that's probably the NYC playground pick up game in me, that I grew up with. Very turned off by the flashy ness that the NBA has turned into, where the players are bigger than the teams.

The problem with that is those New York/Miami games that defined that era were more like 82-78 than 92-88. Shaq excepted I think the NBA has been pretty good about keeping superstars on their teams, though 2010 will be the moment of truth on that front.

I was in a coffee shop the other day when the guy at the counter asked a customer (apparently a regular) if he had seen the nuggets game the night before. The customer replied "Nah, college basketball is better"
The counter guy replied "yeah, why would you want to watch the best in the world? Saying college basketball is better than the NBA is like saying high school basketball is better than College or the NBA, it's completely ridiculous."

I completely disagree. At least for me, I don't care about the actual players playing the game, I care about the quality of the game itself. College, for whatever reason, always draws me in when I do watch it. I can't say the same for the NBA.

One reason I think, is the longer clock shot.. Which allows more plays to be setup, more ball movement, and seemingly allows for additional strategy. I could be making it all up though.

That said, I've always secretly enjoyed the nuggets ever since melo was drafted. But I could care less about any other NBA team.

Reds wrote:I completely disagree. At least for me, I don't care about the actual players playing the game, I care about the quality of the game itself. College, for whatever reason, always draws me in when I do watch it. I can't say the same for the NBA.

One reason I think, is the longer clock shot.. Which allows more plays to be setup, more ball movement, and seemingly allows for additional strategy. I could be making it all up though.

That said, I've always secretly enjoyed the nuggets ever since melo was drafted. But I could care less about any other NBA team.

See, that's one of the things that pisses me off about the longer shot clock. Play execution is TERRIBLE in college basketball. NBA teams do an unbelievable job of setting up and executing plays against the best players in the world in an incredibly short period of time.

College basketball plays are designed with two outcomes. Pro plays are designed with 5 seperate outcomes. There ability to change plays, draw a play out, cut a play short, and improvise are like 1,000 levels beyond college.

In college, if you run a play for a lineup, and don't get the lay-up, some guy ends up clanging a 25 ft. three pointer with no time left. In the NBA, if you don't get your first or second shot, some 6'11" dude wets a 15' jump shot. It's absolutely gorgeous. Watch the Suns. Watch the Celtics. Watch the Spurs. Watch the Blazers and the Rockets. The effectiveness and execution of their offenses is incredible - and is a zillion times better than anything you'll see in college.

Here's the thing: I'm willing to accept an argument about college basketball because someone went to school in a top conference. I'm willing to accept that there's more heart, and there's more riding on each of a team's 30 games.

If we are going to get into the 'level of play' argument - please. It's not anywhere near a worthy discussion. If I wanted to watch people clang 15' jumpers, I'll just go to the Prince St. court on the North End, and save myself the $25 from going to BC.

Royals wrote: If I wanted to watch people clang 15' jumpers, I'll just go to the Prince St. court on the North End, and save myself the $25 from going to BC.

That's what I'm talking about...no whinning superstars. No Starbury's refusing to play. No big men taking a plunge when they get beat in a lane. No star players getting traded for "exiring contracts".

Personally, I enjoy a game where every shot counts. What really turns me off about today's NBA is that the first 2.5 quarters really don't even seem to count. I remember when a 20 point lead at half time meant the game was as good as over. Now, a team can be up by 30, you leave for 10 minutes, come back, and it's a 5 point game.

Maybe as the casual fan, I can't get excited about the NBA anymore because my two teams Knicks & Nets, don't have any rivalries to get excited about.

To me, basketball was fun to watch when it was those Knicks/Bulls, Knicks/Heat, Knicks/Pacers - knock down, drag out contests. The type of rivalry that every regular season loss against those teams would bother me for several days afterwards. The last team that was even remotely fun for me to watch was the Ben Wallace led Pistons.

One more thing, and I'm done. In no sport should a team under .500 be allowed to make the postseason.

No whining superstars? Come on... College BB players, especially the good ones, are just as big d-bags as their pro counterparts. Free passing grades, cars, and educations they rarely bother to take advantage of.

As for those Knicks rivalries... doesn't seem like much of a rivalry when the team never actually won anything during those eras. At least, that's the sort of reasoning I've heard from a lot of NY fans...

"One more thing, and I'm done. In no sport should a team under .500 be allowed to make the postseason."
I disagree, but only because I don't think a team 1 game over .500 should even be allowed in the playoffs, nevermind under.500.

Mets wrote:
One more thing, and I'm done. In no sport should a team under .500 be allowed to make the postseason.

Argument not in favor of college basketball, see Prarie View A&M in 1998 which was 14-19. In fact, the big issue with college basketball is the teams getting into the dance because of a lucky streak in a conference tournament like Cleveland St., which could cost a much worthier team like Creighton or St. Mary's the opportunity to participate.

Look, college sports are much more romantic than professional sports are, that's a 100 year old argument that crosses just about every sport, and if you go for romance and storylines then by all means enjoy the college basketball, which is awesome, but the level of play just isn't even close and from a basketball standpoint if you think you're watching a better played game in the NCAA these days then you don't know dick about basketball.

I am now a pretty big NBA fan, been paying more and more attention the past 5 years, and I definitely side on the NBA for the simple fact of getting to watch the likes of Kobe, Lebron & Wayde run people the likes of Mark Madsen and Kwame Brown. But I can't argue with the excitement of a single college basketball game for the simple fact that the game is only2 hours long. My favorite is when the local channels run encores of the nights game edited down to 60-90 minutes. Knicks in 60, a great way to watch a basketball game.

RedSox wrote:No whining superstars? Come on... College BB players, especially the good ones, are just as big d-bags as their pro counterparts. Free passing grades, cars, and educations they rarely bother to take advantage of.

As for those Knicks rivalries... doesn't seem like much of a rivalry when the team never actually won anything during those eras. At least, that's the sort of reasoning I've heard from a lot of NY fans...

I think you're getting two arguments mixed up. I never claimed to like College basketball either, but that's most likely a product of being a St. Johns fan.

I was only claiming to enjoy defensive minded, hard nosed, every shot challenged ball. Maybe I'm not a true fan of basketball because I'd rather go the the playground and watch it than to an NBA arena.

And as for those Knicks rivalries, I'd rather watch them even if they don't win, then watch my team blow everyone away and walk to a championship.

I won't even get started on how the final two minutes of an NBA game lasts about 20 minutes.

I'm definitely with you on the last two minutes of the game, but you get the same thing in college a lot of the time.
However, there is definitely some great defense being played professionally, as an admitted homer, the Celtics are one of the teams doing it. I got to see the C's play in Denver a couple week back and they absolutely CRUSHED the nuggets defensively, even without Garnett.
College ball looks less like great defense and more like limited offensive ability.