10 Things That Adam Silver Can Give NBA Fans In 2023
Adam Silver reportedly makes $10 million a year to be the NBA’s commissioner.
He has a responsibility to do whatever is in the best interests of the league first and its fans second. Silver has done a pretty good job since taking over for the late-David Stern in 2014. The NBA is not perfect. Far from it. Opportunities for change, for the better, in my opinion, are at Silver’s fingertips should he decide to give his OK to move forward.
I’m not talking about eliminating the one-and-done rule. I’d be OK if the NBA eliminated it, but it’s not at the top of my list of changes the league can make. While I believe that anyone should be able to pursue any job after they turn 18 years old, I also believe that the NBA implemented the rule to protect the young men declaring from high school AND its 30 league owners from investing in players that aren’t ready to perform at the NBA level. In other words, the league implemented the rule to save young men and owners from themselves. For every LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, there’s a Korleone Young and a Robert Swift.
Besides, the NCAA implemented the NIL rule recently. The kids can make money whether in the NBA or NCAA these days.
I’m not talking about changing the All-Star game format, either. Two captains picking the teams, charities winning money based on a team winning a quarter, and the Elam Ending seems to be working.
I’d love to see NBA TV bring back “The Starters.” The show featuring J.E. Skeets, Tas Melas, Trey Kirby, and Leigh Ellis was canceled in 2019. I loved that show. Hell, I’d love to have that job as one of those guys on the show talking hoops and having a good time. That’s not one of the changes I’m talking about either, though.
I hope that Commissioner Silver is still in a giving mood despite the holiday season being over. He could give NBA fans 10 “gifts” in 2023. Silver implementing these changes, or even scrapping some changes he’s already announced, could be seen as gifts to NBA fans:
#1 - Scrap plans for the proposed In-Season Tournament.
The next person I meet that thinks an NBA In-Season Tournament is a good idea will be the first person I’ve met who thinks it’s a good idea. Silver has been pushing this idea for a couple of years now. It’s been reported that said tournament could start as early as next season (2023-24). The fans AND players feel “meh” about it. Are people going to start comparing a player’s rings to how many In-Season tournaments they’ve won? Nobody cares. It’s obvious that this is a money grab for a league that doesn’t need it. The NHL? Sure. Let them do an in-season tournament. Hockey players don’t make as much money as other pro sports. Also…
#2 - Stop fixing things that aren’t broken
Not every idea is a good idea. Adam Silver has been a pretty good commissioner since taking over for the late-David Stern in 2014. Maybe he’s bored. I just feel as if he’s trying too hard to make his mark. There’s the In-Season Tournament. What about this news of awarding the team with the best regular season trophy? It’s not a terrible idea. It’s just not necessary for the NBA to hand out a participation trophy. As the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls said, “it doesn’t mean a thing without the ring.” The NHL has been doing this for years and it is kind of cool, but is taking ideas from the NHL a good idea? Recently, the NBA announced that it is renaming all postseason awards after NBA legends. Again, not a terrible idea but also not necessary. How about focusing on fixing something that IS broken, like how…
#3 – The officiating in the NBA has been terrible this season. Fix it.
I will admit that officiating NBA-level basketball must be much more difficult than the average fan realizes. I’ll give the NBA refs some credit for calling more traveling and palming violations. HOWEVER, it also seems like there have been some egregious actions from NBA refs this season. Or, as a friend recently put it, “the refs are all in their feelings this year.” Veteran NBA official Tony Brothers was suspended for a game for what he called Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie during a game. Earlier this week, official Rodney Mott gave two of the quickest techs of all time to Mavericks star Luka Doncic and coach Jason Kidd leading both to be tossed. There was also both a boneheaded blocking foul and technical given to Bulls star DeMar DeRozan at the end of a recent Bulls/Hawks game. Don’t get me started on the last two-minute reports the NBA publishes. Every fan knows that if the league wants the Suns to lose a playoff game, all they need to do is assign Scott Foster to ref it due to a suspected beef with Chris Paul. These are just examples I can go on and on. No fan watches the game to see Scott Foster, Ed Malloy, and Zack Zarba. Which is exactly why the NBA should…
#4 – Adjust the rules for Coach’s Challenges
I think that it’s great that coaches can challenge a call that the officials make on the court during a dead ball. The NBA instituted the Coach’s Challenge for the 2019-20 season. Coaches can challenge one call per game, to which the officiating crew will review multiple replay angles to determine if the correct call was made. Head Coaches must be strategic when they use their challenges. Most wait until late in the 4th quarter. If these lose a challenge, their team is charged with a timeout. If they win a challenge, they don’t lose a timeout and basically earned a free one by default. I believe implementing the Coach’s Challenge has been successful, but it’s time to take it a step further. Give the Coach’s a second challenge – one per half. Or, if you lose a challenge, you don’t get a second one for the rest of the game. If you win a challenge, you get one more to use. One Coach’s Challenge doesn’t seem like enough because the NBA practically does not…
#5 – Allow SOME defense to be played
Today’s players are arguably more skilled than ever before. On the other hand, today’s player is arguably softer (both mentally and physically) than ever before. I love that the league favors the offensive player. It allows basketball skills to be showcased, but it seems to favor the offensive player TOO much. The NBA took away hand-checking, and you can’t body up a guy anymore. Why have it both ways? Refs seem to swallow their whistles more in crunch time and allow more physical play in the postseason. For now, there are teams regularly scoring 140+ points in regulation. A lot of that is skill, but most of it is “Ole” defense that’s being played. What do the NBA legends think of today’s game? Ask them while the NBA tries to…
#6 – Find a way to integrate NBA legends into All-Star Weekend
Admittedly, this may be my worst of these ten ideas. Hear me out. I think the NBA needs to find a way to allow NBA legends to participate more in the All-Star Weekend festivities. I’m not talking about the parties either. The NBA used to do this with its Shooting Stars competition on All-Star Saturday night. Why not bring that back or have a Legends Three-Point Shootout? Legend (no pun intended) has it that 66-year-old Larry Bird can still sling it. Fifty-somethings Reggie Miller and Grant Hill look like they could give an NBA team 10-15 minutes today! Hell, the NBA used to have its own version of the Old-Timer’s Game called “The Legend’s Classic.” Perhaps a full-court game with the old guys is a bad idea. What about a 3-on-3 tournament? Ice Cube, provided it can work with his Big 3 League. All-Star Weekend could also be an opportunity to…
#7 – Announce expansion to Seattle and bring back the Supersonics
I’ve been standing on this soapbox for a while now. I strongly believe that the NBA should expand to Seattle. Supersonics fans got their team taken away from them when Clay Bennett purchased the team and moved it to Oklahoma City in 2008. The NBA would need to add a second expansion team, and I have the perfect plan for it all. The NBA’s TV deal is up in after the 2024-25 season. Why not announce expansion now to drive excitement and attract a more lucrative deal by being in two additional markets? The new Sonics and second expansion team could being play in the 2025-26 season, where hopefully, the league also decides to…
#8 – Renew its TV deal with Turner Sports
The NBA and Turner Sports have been partners for decades. I and many other fans love turning to TNT to see what EJ, Kenny, Charles, and Shaq will say or do. “Inside the NBA” is an institution and has been a staple of the league for so long. They aren’t slowing down, and it makes all the sense in the world for the NBA to re-up with Turner. They produce NBA TV in the same building, for heaven’s sake! While they’re at it, the NBA could also…
#9 – Bring back the NBA on NBC
Two Words: Roundball Rock. Any basketball fan over the age of 25 surely knows the iconic theme music to the “NBA on NBC.” There was just something about those telecasts on NBC. Some say it was Roundball Rock. Others say it was Marv Albert (not me). Maybe it’s me wanting to relive a bit of my childhood and teenage years. Speaking of…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ENtBa1Qbmk&feature=emb_imp_woyt
How could you NOT get pumped for a game after watching this promo clip? I would also be pumped if the NBA produced…
#10 – More Open Court episodes and documentaries on NBA TV
If you’re unfamiliar with NBA TV’s Open Court, do yourself a favor and check out the clips on YouTube. I love listening to the old stars tell stories about what the game really was really like in their heyday. The behind-the-curtain stories are priceless! NBA TV has also produced documentaries about Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson, Julius Erving, and others. The “Players Only” series has been spectacular as well. The sit-down pairings have been pretty interesting, to say the least. Shaq and Kobe. Magic and Isiah. Grant Hill and Jason Kidd. D-Wade and KG. McHale and Bird. Kemp and Payton. Give us new docs, NBA!
I’ll leave you with some of my ideas for the next “Players Only” sit-downs.
Reggie Miller and John Starks
Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen
Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler
Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen
Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan
Here’s to a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous 2023!
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