Yea...I'm going there.
I've lost a lot of interest in basketball over the last few years, and the NBA hasn't helped their cause with me at all. Granted, living here in Minnesota and having to put up with the Timberwolves may be at the heart of my disdain for the sport, but a lot of it is strictly rooted in the NBA as a business/company/product. Tuesday's Draft Lottery didn't help matters, either!
The Timberwolves have had little to no luck in the Draft Lottery, having never landed the number one overall pick in the draft, despite having the worst record in basketball two separate times, including this past season. Back in the 1993 Draft Lottery, the Wolves had the second worst record in the NBA and were given 10 ping-pong balls in the hopper, (Dallas had the worst record, and was given 11 balls). The number one overall pick that year was awarded to the Orlando Magic, a team that had only one ball in the lottery, and subsequently took that pick and drafted Shaquille O'Neal. For the Wolves, and the Mavericks alike, that was some of the worst "luck."
The issue I have with the NBA Lottery is that it's done behind closed doors. The balls are plucked from the little bingo hopper where the public can't see it, and the results are announced in a prime-time event during an NBA Playoff game. So, why is the NBA upset when people start to scream conspiracy? If you have nothing to hide, then let us see the balls get selected. Hell, that would be the whole fun of the event, wouldn't it? Waiting to see if your team's ping-pong ball came up would create incredible drama.
Instead, you have the type of controversial results you had on Tuesday night. The Cleveland Cavaliers, who just lost LeBron James to South Beach during this past off-season's free agent campaign, landed the first overall pick in the draft, causing the Timberwolves to select second. Now, Cleveland finished this season with the second worst record behind Minnesota, so for them to get the lucky #1 pick wasn't entirely unlikely. But, is it wrong to have the conspiracy thought run through your mind?
On December 2nd, 2010, when Miami traveled to Cleveland to play the Cavs, the NBA saw one of it's highest rated games in years. The LeBron drama pulled people in, but the result of the game made people yawn. The ill feelings towards James by the Cleveland fans made for very intriguing television, which is something the NBA absolutely loves! However, that was about all the game could offer. When the Cavs and Heat met for the second time, the ratings had already taken a huge dip from the first game. Couple that with the promise of Cavs' owner Dan Gilbert that his Cavaliers team would win an NBA Championship before LeBron James, and you start to see why having Cleveland "win" the first overall pick in the draft to help boost their talent becomes a little more intriguing for the league. I'm not saying...I'm just saying.
For the record, I've never been a fan of NBA Commissioner David Stern. Compared to the heads of the other three major professional sports in this country, his actions have created more conversation and skepticism than one would like. Perhaps that is what he's looking for, because it creates a "buzz" around his product. Some believe it's a good thing that only seven different teams have won NBA Championships in the last 23 years. Others, like myself, believe this is bad for the sport. Some believe it's a good thing for seven or eight teams to bring in two or three "superstar" players to create mega-teams. Others, like myself, think this isn't interesting. Some believe that the Draft Lottery is a good system to prevent teams from "throwing" their seasons in an attempt to get the first pick in the draft. Others, like myself, believe this is a way to possibly control the results when you feel you need to, because the public will never know. It's like the ace up Stern's sleeve. He doesn't always need to use it, but when the time is right, because the system is in place, it can possibly be manipulated to bring a needed result.
Not saying that's what happened...but, it's got you thinking a little bit now, doesn't it?
I would have to agree. Let us see the lottery. The fact the Cabs now have the 1st and 3rd via trade makes me wonder what exactly goes on behind closed doors. The NBA is a joke and a scam.
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