The return of the NBA to NBC was a pleasant surprise to start the season. From their high-level production, insightful commentary, and player-focused streaming, there’s very little to complain about outside of an additional Peacock subscription.
Overall, their analysts have been far superior and more knowledgeable than what we’ve received from ESPN and TNT in recent years. The only problem I have with NBC is their use of Michael Jordan. When they announced that Jordan would be a part of their primetime shows, most thought he would be on the desk, adding game preview; however, in reality, it appears to be a long list of pre-recorded interviews between Mike Tirico and Jordan.
I don’t even hate it. Tirico is one of the best in the business, and Jordan is rarely in the spotlight these days, so having something to rack his brains for is great for basketball. What concerns me about these interviews is that they give the impression of an “old man shouting into the wind.”
During their last meeting, Jordan complained about load management, saying, “I never wanted to miss a game, because it was an opportunity to prove.” » His main feeling during the session was that if you are able to play, you have to play to the fans.
Jordan went on to say, “You play two and a half hours a day, three hours a day, that’s your job, that’s what you get paid for…what do you do the other twenty-one hours of the day?”
This criticism of NBA players seems so out of line. The common criticism in modern basketball is that no one cares, no one tries hard, and no one plays defense. If you’re not someone who falls for these blatantly false statements, you know this couldn’t be further from the truth. Today’s athletes put a lot more wear and tear on their bodies, on and off the field. From advanced weight and speed training to the most critical part: how many more players move from game to game.
Since the 1990s, at the rate of 82 games, players have traveled an average of more than 200 additional miles per season. I know old brains won’t like to hear it, but modern basketball is a much more physical sport and destroys the body much more quickly. If you watch a random Tuesday night game, the amount of off-ball movement is something you would never see in a game from the 90s.
This is a film of a few minutes of an NBA Finals game. The pace is so slow that there is little movement on offense, and if your man doesn’t have the ball, you stand perfectly still on defense.
Comparing this to some random Reed Sheppard highlights in the regular season, it doesn’t seem like the same sport is being played. Basketball has evolved and optimized so quickly over the past decade that people don’t fully realize how pointless it is to perform in an NBA game.
The science clearly shows that giving players games on their schedule is very beneficial for longevity and, more importantly, playoff availability. Does it suck when star players participate in a random weekday game? Sure, but I’d rather that happen than have the finals be a competition whose teams’ star players managed to stay healthy this year.
Load management sucks, but comparing the eras of older players to modern players isn’t fair. Sport is much more taxing on the body, and I would like the stars of past years to finally come to this realization themselves.
