Five NBA Things I may or may not have Liked: ASG, Dame, TwitterLeaks, Magic 3-Ball, Tambling

…the All-Star Game?

The NBA might have stumbled upon something with this new All-Star format. The three teams of eight, guided by the superficial demographic breakdown of foreign, old, and young appears to have lit a match under enough participants to make the games entertaining. However, I don’t think the whole foreign vs USA angle is what made the games so good. I think shrinking each team by 50% is what did the trick.

First and foremost, the problem with the All-Star game was never that no one tried; it was always that there was a critical mass of not giving a shit. If seven out of ten players are out there with the sole purpose of insulting the phrase “going through the motions,” then the game will devolve into a farce. However, if five or six guys are actually giving an honest effort, the intensity of the game will pick up.

By shrinking the teams, it allowed for a higher percentage of minutes to be played by players who gave one flying fuck. Remember, competition breeds competition. I hope the NBA realizes that all it takes is a few insane people to get the All-Star game humming, and the best way to guarantee they’re on the court is to shrink the rosters.

Remember my Dame

Damian Lillard has not played a single minute this season, but that didn’t stop him from winning the 3-point contest. While I’m sure some found his presence vexing, he made it an apt choice. Had he shown up, shot terribly, laughed it off, and watched the rest of it like a civilian, it would have looked like a disastrous decision. However, Dame came to play and reminded everyone just how special a player he is. We’ll see how he looks when he eventually returns to the court from his Achilles injury, but I’m glad that he got at least one more moment at All-Star weekend and made it count.

TwitterLeaks

If there is one thing Kevin Durant loves, it’s Twitter controversy. Whether it’s firing off at the haters or forgetting he’s not using his burner account, Durant is about that social media smoke, but this time, he might have gotten burned. According to whoever reported it, Durant, through a burner account, allegedly sent a series of direct messages bashing his teammates. Some of the quips are slightly humorous, some are kinda fucked up, but all of them were never meant to see the light of day, if it was actually Durant.

I have no idea if Durant actually sent these messages. At first, I didn’t believe it. Simply because it’d be so astronomically stupid to vent about how shitty your teammates are to some random dude on Twitter. However, when asked about the alleged leaks, Durant gave the most damning response in history, saying, “I’m not here to get into Twitter nonsense.” First, Durant has proudly been here to get into Twitter nonsense. And second, that’s not a denial.

If it’s proven that Durant was actually behind these messages, it’ll be catastrophic for his legacy. No one has ever questioned his skill, talent, or workethic, but his leadership and fortitude have been, and these messages make those questions look like assertions. On top of that, the Rockets should suspend him for conduct detrimental to the team, and if I were Rafael Stone, I’d trade him in the summer. Now, there needs to be proof that Durant was the man behind these messages, but his nondenial denial has only added to the intrigue.

Magic 3-Ball

The Orlando Magic have had a disappointing season, to say the least. However, they’re on track to finish with a top-20 offense for the first time since, I shit you not, 2011-12, and just last night, they set their franchise record for made threes. Pummeling the Kings 131-94 isn’t impressive, but going 27-50 from three certainly is.

What makes this explosion even more magical is the Magic’s previous record for threes was 25, set two seasons ago against the Kings. And before that, their record of 23, set in 2009, was also accomplished in Sacramento. I’m not suggesting that the Magic relocate to Sacramento, but it seems to be the best cure for their franchise’s 3-point shooting woes. Or perhaps it’s playing the hapless Sacramento defense, but that’s not as much fun.

Tambling

Adam Silver has made it known that he will enact anti-tanking measures to save the NBA from the wrath of their gambling partners. The whole anti-tanking stance that the league and podcasters have deemed an existential threat never held up to scrutiny. If tanking was such a problem, how come the league continues to print money like the Zimbabwe central bank? Perhaps, you could say that’s why regional broadcast deals have hit a lull, but that’s widespread, largely been market-based, and directly linked to cord-cutting. No, the reality is that tanking has never been a financial issue for the league, until now, maybe.

Gambling is bad. It provides no societal value, produces few jobs, and really only acts to syphon money from the have-lesses to have-mores. However, the NBA decided to get into bed with these succubuses, and now their soulless corpse is being coerced to act. The brand of tanking this season is undoubtedly bad for the league’s gambling partners. It’s hard to set a line if you have no idea if Lauri Markkanen is going to play more than 24 minutes, and that’s just a non-starter for these greedy, petulant assholes.

I personally don’t understand why the NBA is cowering to the demands of its gambling partners. They need the NBA more than the NBA needs them. From November to April, it’s the only major American league that provides gambling content seven days a week, with apologies to hockey. In fact, the NBA owes an F-you to these bloodsuckers for all the controversies their stupid business is causing them. Adam Silver’s ability to be a spinless amoeba has been a virtue, but now it’s becoming a weakness. At some point, the NBA needs to draw a line in the sand over gambling, but right now, they’re letting it wash away all their tracks.

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