Posted on 03/12/2011 3:04:49 PM PST by publius321
I understand that. Let’s find a better comparison to baseball, then. I’m sure a lot of baseball fans find it fascinating when a catcher runs through his signs and the pitcher keeps shaking him off, but I don’t think that adds a ton of excitement to the game for the fans.
I have to snicker here a bit because I actually thought of chess as another example of a game where the unwashed might think stuff only happens in a certain very short amount of time but in reality there’s a lot going on outside that time.
I don’t know if football is necessarily superior to all sports because of its complexity, I still think the core athleticism of hockey makes it superior. But it is the most fun sport to over analyze, and it is probably the most layered sport, with a lot more going on that just the “action” part of the game.
And I will say that when basketball is played well, something you will almost never see in the NBA but still see a lot in college, it is a beautiful game to behold. The way good teams that pass and think and other things that are seemingly against the rules in the NBA make the ball move around in 3 dimensions can be awe inspiring.
The recent defensive rule changes in the NBA have actually improved the offensive game. By allowing zone defense they have forced teams to execute a team offense instead of just isolating a star.
The recent defensive rule changes in the NBA have actually improved the offensive game. By allowing zone defense they have forced teams to execute a team offense instead of just isolating a star.
It’s a ridiculously dumb figure, it was a dumb figure 25 years ago when some anti-sports psuedo-scientist first spewed it out, and it’s become dumber as the game has evolved and so much more chicanery happens pre-snap than did then.
It’s not just the success or failure it’s all the things that HAPPEN. The offense sends out a grouping of players, the defense reacts to that grouping with their own grouping, the offense goes into a formation the defense reacts to that formation, the offense sends guys into motion and audiblizes in reaction to the defensive lineup, the defense reacts to that, the offense often goes into motion AGAIN, and the defense reacts, AGAIN. And according to this “study” none of that is football. In a typical NFL play the offense and defense will show 3 different looks EACH, but none of that is between the snap and the whistle, so it is, according to that number, “nothing”. It’s not off the field game prep, it’s ON the field ACTION.
You might think it’s dull, but the numbers say you’re on the wrong side of the bell curve. I know you don’t like how the game has changed, but I and a growing number of people LOVE how the game has changed. Every way there is of counting fans is up, attendance, TV ratings, participation in fantasy leagues, TV ratings of shows discussing football well outside the season (the only league that gets a regular talk show on ESPN when the sport is out of session is the NFL), spending. The game is more exciting to more people now than it was back when you liked it.
That seems right. Most of the money that comes directly from fans goes directly to teams, but there is that big fat wad of money that’s mostly TV that goes to the league first then gets divied up.
Yeah, I pretty much lost all faith in the NBA when they outlawed the zone, then the free throw percentage dropped below 30%. I was glad when they made it legal again, and the last time I looked free throws were up over 50%. But the game still isn’t that good, most teams still have a tendency to run a dribble and shoot offense with little passing and play design. Just look at the trouble Miami has been having, every analyst around the league, and half the team, knows exactly what they’re problem is, nobody passes so they’re constantly playing 1 on 5 and there are no “stars” good enough to win that way. And yet they keep playing that way, game after game.
It would be funny if it wasn’t so endemic in the league. Some teams still play decent team ball, most of them will be in the conference finals in a few weeks. The rest of the league will be watching along with Miami.
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