NBA breakdown

February 22, 2025 | 12:00am

The National Basketball Association is experiencing a gradual deterioration in its fan base. With an anemic showing in the All-Star Weekend (save for Mac McClung injecting life into the dunk contest), even league insiders are saying that there is something wrong with the game. Fans have noticed the difference too, and have become more discriminating in the games and players that they want to watch. And with the likes of LeBron James and Steph Curry nearing retirement, the question is: who will carry the league next?

These are not new problems, though. After the heyday of the late 1980s and early 1990s, the NBA started to see a decline, beginning with the All-Star weekend. They experimented on replacing the slam dunk protest with NBA 2ball. After the novelty wore off, it did not work. They were experiencing diminishing returns, because there are only so many things you can do with the dunk contest. Also, with the wear and tear and other non-basketball obligations, the league’s superstars started declining the invitation to join. It was a rare opportunity for them to rest, even within the All-Star Game itself.

The rules also started to change. After the bruising era of the so-called Jordan Rules, the NBA started favoring offensive players a little too much. They wanted to see higher-scoring games, more dunks, more highlights. Unfortunately, the side effect has been weaker defenses and lackluster games. It has reached the point where players are hardly called for traveling violations anymore. And the spectators see it. Ironically, in this era of less physical play, some teams started the ridiculous practice of “load management.“ Imagine saving your hard-earned money, and traveling a long distance, and buying expensive concessionaire food just to see your favorite player, and he doesn’t play. It has watered down the game, and the fans don’t like it.

Next, the game itself has changed. After a new group acquired the Golden State Warriors in 2012, they decided to go for greater rewards with three-point shooting. As they succeeded, other teams, nay, even other countries, started to copy them. Even teams whose personality was more suited to inside play started trying to do it the easy way by simply chucking up three-pointers. Although this can be exciting, we can only take so much. After a while, it becomes monotonous, and the more athletic, exciting players start to feel less important.

But the biggest change has been a sense of entitlement among players, primarily because they are getting paid too much, too soon. Michael Jordan himself said that his generation had to earn their big paychecks, while succeeding players were being paid big bucks based on potential. With the riches coming that easily, a lot of players don’t seem to value how fortunate they are. Instead of continuing to fight intensely during games, they take it easy to avoid injury. This is most evident during the All-Star game itself where nobody plays defense and scores are cartoonishly high. There seems to be no more pride in playing good defense and proving one’s self during games.

Instead of tinkering with formats and peripherals, the NBA would be better served restoring its old culture. Pride in the profession, hard work, loyalty to fans, and all the values that made it great to begin with. If not, it will inevitably get drowned out by all the other more entertaining competition online. This explains the growing audience for women’s basketball and European style of play. If the NBA can hark back to its own way of playing, hopefully it can find its lost glory.