Sell me on basketball

[twi]

I never played the game and have never lived in an area where I've had a "home" team. Give me an underdog to root for, team, player, whatever. Let's hear of compelling story lines to watch this season. As someone who wishes more people would give hockey a chance, I feel I should do the same for the totally alien (to me) sport of basketball. Gentlemen, give me a reason to care about these dunking goliaths of the hardwood. Make me a fan.

[infrared41]

My advice? Stick with hockey.

[OnWis97]

Start with college. Tickets are more affordable and I find the game more fun to watch, compared to the long NBA season. Plus you appear to be a USF fan. I don't know much about their team, but they are in the Big East, so you'll get to see some good teams.

[The_Admiral]

I was lucky enough to watch the popular television program Michael Jordan & Friends in my formative years. You don't really have that luxury, I guess, but you could probably find some episodes on youtube.

Don't start with college; that's dumb. Start with the best basketball available, which is the NBA. How's he gonna get into the sport by watching stiffs miss lay-ups?

[OnWis97]

One can only guess which game he'd prefer. I am not alone in preferring the college game. The best players do not always equal the best game. And the most expensive tickets do not equal the best atmosphere. Give me pep bands and student sections over $700 tickets near the front any day.

[Gothamite]

No, you're not alone. I lost interest in the NBA years ago, but I'll still watch a college game.

[The_Admiral]

One can only guess which game he'd prefer. I am not alone in preferring the college game. The best players do not always equal the best game. And the most expensive tickets do not equal the best atmosphere. Give me pep bands and student sections over $700 tickets near the front any day.

jigga to thread please

[Wasatch]

Hey, you?re going to be drawn to the sport that?s most compelling to you. My favorite sport to follow and watch happens to be basketball, while my least favorite is hockey. You happen to be the opposite and there?s nothing wrong with that. Nobody should have to sell you on a game, just do what you want.

[OnWis97]

Hey, you?re going to be drawn to the sport that?s most compelling to you. My favorite sport to follow and watch happens to be basketball, while my least favorite is hockey. You happen to be the opposite and there?s nothing wrong with that. Nobody should have to sell you on a game, just do what you want.

That's probably a better answer than the rest of us have given. And we probably don't want to flood this thread with "college vs. NBA". Some of us would suggest college, others pro.

To feed on this quote, if you want to give hoops a chance, I'd check out both games on TV (and in person if you have the means and geographic ability) for a while and at some point you'll determine whether basketball is your cup of tea (and, secondarilly, whether you like college, NBA or both).

Additionally, if you have any friends who like hoops, go to, or watch, a couple of games with them. Particularly if they are patient with your questions.

[NJTank]

Try being a NJ Nets fan and have an interest in the NBA these days, it aint easy.

[CC97]

Try being a NJ Nets fan and have an interest in the NBA these days, it aint easy.

Saw that coming, no matter what season it is

[tj4eck]

The Portland Blazers are a fun bunch to watch.

They don't seem to be out for personal gain.

They are involved in their community.

They are a well built and young team you can stick around with and get to know longer.

Plus they play in the west which means exciting games and up-tempo basketball.

But that's just my biased opinion.

[Jigga]

One can only guess which game he'd prefer. I am not alone in preferring the college game. The best players do not always equal the best game. And the most expensive tickets do not equal the best atmosphere. Give me pep bands and student sections over $700 tickets near the front any day.

jigga to thread please

You rang?

I can't begin to express how disappointed this thread makes me, but I promise that in the next couple of days I will write an essay addressing this topic. Not to sell anyone on basketball, but just why I love the NBA and kind of defending the pro game against some of its ignorant p(h)uckhead more vehement detractors. College ball is great, I love it, too...but I'm more of an NBA guy. Watch one, watch both, watch neither, whatever...good on you. I just could do without all the unsolicited displays of ignorance douchebaggery hate.

As for the OP...like what you like, no one should have to convince you of anything. Just watch a couple of marquee games, watch LeBron's dazzling array of skill, watch Kobe's drive in the clutch, watch D-Wade play with pure heart, watch Dwight Howard's freakish athleticism, watch how smooth guys like Danny Granger and Carmello Anthony are, watch Chris Paul and Tony Parker break ankles. If you like what you see, watch more. If you don't, stop watching. Who gives a :censored:, really?

Anyway, I will post a ridiculously long winded and loquacious, but well thought out essay in the coming days. Stay tuned and thank you for your support.

[slapshot]

I don't think an essay should convince you. You need to see it in person, or at least on tv, so what everyone says makes sense.

Speed, nuance, flow, size, etc, mean nothing unless you can see it in action.

Try going with a fan and taking in a game, whether it's a good high school, college, or even NBA game. Then decide if it's for you or not.

[Wasatch]

The Portland Blazers are a fun bunch to watch.

They don't seem to be out for personal gain.

They are involved in their community.

They are a well built and young team you can stick around with and get to know longer.

Plus they play in the west which means exciting games and up-tempo basketball.

But that's just my biased opinion.

I?m not a Blazer fan but I can definitely agree with you. It?s a nice change of scenery compared to the Jail Blazer group they had back in the late 90?s.

[capn89]

Basketball sucks. It's boring. Don't waste your time. I'm doing this right?

[Saintsfan]

Basketball is actually a great game. Skillful, fast, easy to understand, tactical, exciting, tough.

As for story lines for 2009-10, well there are probably a lot more, but can the Magic get back there playoff erm... magic, can Kevin Garnett come back from injury and push the Celtics back into contention, the LeBron and Kobe match up as the two best players in the league. But overall I think the best storylines are the ones that develop through the season.

As for a team to follow. My advice would be to just pick one and have that as your team. How to pick? Do you have a city you have some emotional tie to? a favorite uniform, or color scheme? A favorite player? Anything at all. But do it for a reason.

[RyanMcD29]

It really depends on your tastes. I myself am more of a puckhead than a hoopster, and I prefer the college game over the NBA, but it all comes down to preference. Any level's good to start. I really became more interested in basketball in high school going to all my school's games and I ended up being a huge part of the team by being one of their biggest fans and doing photography and taping games for them. Plus the college game I always find entertaining whether it be a non-conference matchup, a huge conference rivalry, or of course March Madness (it also helps going to a major powerhouse, but still). Although admittedly I'm not that big of an NBA fan, the playoffs are really fun to watch and a ton of games go down to the wire. Hell, I'm even following women's college hoops this year because my senior prom date's playing at a D-1 school this year. In the end, it really comes down to preference so watch a few games at each level and see what you like.

[oddball]

To me I say avoid basketball as a whole. It's flawed. I'm sorry, but the flow of every game is killed at the end of the game when 2 minutes takes 30 minutes because of all the stoppages. There are way too many stoppages in basketball due to tv and timeouts called by coaches. I hate watching coaches call unneeded timeouts at the end of the game. Give them one time out for each half and then you'd have a better game with a better flow. I use to love basketball until Jordan ruined the game by making everyone think they could play one on one basketball. Jordan killed the game that Bird and Magic built up so high and was fun to watch. Throw in the timeouts at the end of the game and you lost a fan a long time ago. I don't care what level it is, I think coaches with the timeouts along with Jordan turned me off of the game.

[IceCap]

One can only guess which game he'd prefer. I am not alone in preferring the college game. The best players do not always equal the best game. And the most expensive tickets do not equal the best atmosphere. Give me pep bands and student sections over $700 tickets near the front any day.

jigga to thread please

You rang?

I can't begin to express how disappointed this thread makes me, but I promise that in the next couple of days I will write an essay addressing this topic. Not to sell anyone on basketball, but just why I love the NBA and kind of defending the pro game against some of its ignorant p(h)uckhead more vehement detractors. College ball is great, I love it, too...but I'm more of an NBA guy. Watch one, watch both, watch neither, whatever...good on you. I just could do without all the unsolicited displays of ignorance douchebaggery hate.

As for the OP...like what you like, no one should have to convince you of anything. Just watch a couple of marquee games, watch LeBron's dazzling array of skill, watch Kobe's drive in the clutch, watch D-Wade play with pure heart, watch Dwight Howard's freakish athleticism, watch how smooth guys like Danny Granger and Carmello Anthony are, watch Chris Paul and Tony Parker break ankles. If you like what you see, watch more. If you don't, stop watching. Who gives a :censored:, really?

Anyway, I will post a ridiculously long winded and loquacious, but well thought out essay in the coming days. Stay tuned and thank you for your support.

Why do I get the feeling that your "essay" will be nothing more but you bashing hockey and praising basketball, doing what you claim those "p(h)uck heads" are guilty of doing?

'Cause it's not like we haven't see that before.

No need to worry about that. This is an NBA thread. It'll be forgotten by the time Yukon Pennisula IceFishermen winger Vlatchislaf Petrokinorikovitch scores his first career short-handed goal on a slapshot wrister through North Alberta Yetieaters goalie Mirakovan Kumantumavanokov's five hole tonight...and gets in a fight two seconds later.