https://citizenfreepress.com/breaking/nb...last-year/

Pro Sports is a luxury. It is not a necessity. When that luxury spits in your face and calls you a racist you stop spending money on that luxury. Not everyone likes to be abused and pro sports is abusing its primary customer base.

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"If you always do what you've always done, You'll always get what you always got"

On top of that, the NBA doesn't have as much star power as you think they would.

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This is not a Political subject since it's obvious the ratings are down due to the simple fact that the elite players take 25% or more of the regular season games off. An example of this is Lakers vs Nets in which LeBron, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and James Harden did not play. This was an NBA Dream Matchup that totally got sank due to players not valuing regular season. Check the ratings when the playoffs start up again -- that will be the true indication of whether the general population still watch or not.

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I do wonder what is contributing to the dropped ratings for the NBA. I used to really love the NBA. It was the first professional league I became interested in as a kid, even before the NFL. But over the last few years, it seems to have lost quite a bit of it's luster. And I can't quite put my finger on why. I do think that the pandemic hurt it this past year, and that visually it wasn't as appealing watching it being played in near empty arenas in a bubble. Whereas the NFL looked good on TV, regardless of whether the stadiums were empty or not.

I remember some years ago having the League pass for a few years. But when I had it was always in the Spring, (where it was always the busiest at work) and it got to the point to where I couldn't watch a lot of the games on it. So I stopped purchasing the service. (And you can always get at least a couple of free previews of it each year). Now this year I haven't seen many games at all. I'm trying to watch some upcoming games, including some today. But it doesn't interest me as much as it used to be. Maybe if I start watching more games regularly that might help.

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This is not a Political subject since it's obvious the ratings are down due to the simple fact that the elite players take 25% or more of the regular season games off.  An example of this is Lakers vs Nets in which LeBron, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and James Harden did not play.   This was an NBA Dream Matchup that totally got sank due to players not valuing regular season.  Check the ratings when the playoffs start up again -- that will be the true indication of whether the general population still watch or not.

I disagree, when they plaster a racist Black Lives Matter message on the floors of their court and kneel for the National Anthem, it is THEY that are making it political.

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"If you always do what you've always done, You'll always get what you always got"

I used to love basketball.. Was a huge Heat fan.. Haven't watched a game since they splattered the BLM logo all over their floors. I don't support terrorist organizations.

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This is not a Political subject since it's obvious the ratings are down due to the simple fact that the elite players take 25% or more of the regular season games off.  An example of this is Lakers vs Nets in which LeBron, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and James Harden did not play.   This was an NBA Dream Matchup that totally got sank due to players not valuing regular season.  Check the ratings when the playoffs start up again -- that will be the true indication of whether the general population still watch or not.

Yeah, i'm sure that's it.

I used to love basketball.. Was a huge Heat fan.. Haven't watched a game since they splattered the BLM logo all over their floors. I don't support terrorist organizations.

If there are just 2-3 people on a Jaguar message board that stopped watching because of this, that kind of cements the fact this is a bigger issue for the NBA.

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I used to love basketball.. Was a huge Heat fan.. Haven't watched a game since they splattered the BLM logo all over their floors. I don't support terrorist organizations.

I too grew up a Sixers fan. I loved them. Philadelphia Freedom, I love, love , love them, YES I DO.. Charles Barkley, Maurice Cheeks, Dr. J... I loved me some Dr. J...Julius Erving.... 

I won't turn on the NBA nor the MLB or NASCAR in my house ever again. My love for the NFL and my nephews chances of playing in the NFL are the reasons I still watch. Plus my son is 12 years old and built like a Man and will probably end up being 6'6 and over 300#'s. so he might be a candidate, lol...  Dads can dream...

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"If you always do what you've always done, You'll always get what you always got"

I used to love basketball.. Was a huge Heat fan.. Haven't watched a game since they splattered the BLM logo all over their floors. I don't support terrorist organizations.

I too grew up a Sixers fan. I loved them. Philadelphia Freedom, I love, love , love them, YES I DO.. Charles Barkley, Maurice Cheeks, Dr. J... I loved me some Dr. J...Julius Erving.... 

I won't turn on the NBA nor the MLB or NASCAR in my house ever again. My love for the NFL and my nephews chances of playing in the NFL are the reasons I still watch. Plus my son is 12 years old and built like a Man and will probably end up being 6'6 and over 300#'s. so he might be a candidate, lol...  Dads can dream...

"My love for the NFL"

hahahahahahah You tried to boycott them.....

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Personally, I don't watch the NBA's regular season anymore (boring), BUT I must admit that I was intrigued over the past few weeks at some matchups that would have been classic but instead flamed out due to star players sitting out. Games like the Nets-Sixers and Lakers-Clippers should draw top ratings but it really sucks everyone is sitting out until the playoffs.

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I too grew up a Sixers fan. I loved them. Philadelphia Freedom, I love, love , love them, YES I DO.. Charles Barkley, Maurice Cheeks, Dr. J... I loved me some Dr. J...Julius Erving.... 

I won't turn on the NBA nor the MLB or NASCAR in my house ever again. My love for the NFL and my nephews chances of playing in the NFL are the reasons I still watch. Plus my son is 12 years old and built like a Man and will probably end up being 6'6 and over 300#'s. so he might be a candidate, lol...  Dads can dream...

"My love for the NFL"

hahahahahahah You tried to boycott them.....

I don't try, when I boycott, I boycott. As a fan, I was exercising my right to voice my displeasure to the actions of a league that seemed to forget who pays the bills.

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"If you always do what you've always done, You'll always get what you always got"

Personally, I don't watch the NBA's regular season anymore (boring), BUT I must admit that I was intrigued over the past few weeks at some matchups that would have been classic but instead flamed out due to star players sitting out.  Games like the Nets-Sixers and Lakers-Clippers should draw top ratings but it really sucks everyone is sitting out until the playoffs.

Yeah that's the bigger factor. 
They started treating star players the way baseball treats pitchers and the fans aren't going along with it. 
If I buy tickets to the Magic vs. Milwaukee, I want to see Giannis.
The powers that be have to figure out a way to force them to play their stars for more minutes.
This is also a warning to the NFL.  The NBA regular season is mostly meaningless because half the teams will go to the playoffs and the other half go to the draft lottery.  Expanding the NFL playoffs makes the NFL more like the NBA.  It's a bad idea.  

For the NFL, ideally there would be no divisions, just a full round robin of 15 games against the other conference teams plus 1 or 2 out of conference games.  There would be no unfair drag on your schedule like where the Jags always had to play peyton manning twice or the Dolphins always had to play Tom Brady twice.  Think about how the Jags would have to compete for a wild card spot against teams that didn't have to play manning twice, doubly unfair.  So screw that, everybody plays everybody else once, done.

Then at most there would be 6 teams from each conference in the playoffs.

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My fellow southpaw Mark Brunell will probably always be my favorite Jaguar.

Personally, I don't watch the NBA's regular season anymore (boring), BUT I must admit that I was intrigued over the past few weeks at some matchups that would have been classic but instead flamed out due to star players sitting out.  Games like the Nets-Sixers and Lakers-Clippers should draw top ratings but it really sucks everyone is sitting out until the playoffs.

NBA has a problem because they have elevated the player above the team. It's a problem with any team sport. A lot of the players also don't really care anymore. It's just a job to them to keep them famous and make money. Too many of they don't have a killer instinct or drive to be the best.

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It's a two-fold problem. The players in the NBA are some if the more vocal athletes with regard to the political realm, and it's turned off some of their more conservative fans and maybe even the moderates. Sports is an escape of sorts from the day to day grind, and constant reminders are bound to turn away some fans.

Additionally, it's putting out a bad product. Statistics ball has largely ruined the human confrontation element of basketball, and the game is essentially just about who's shots are falling that night. People like to see one player beat another and that just isn't there anymore.

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This is not a Political subject since it's obvious the ratings are down due to the simple fact that the elite players take 25% or more of the regular season games off.  An example of this is Lakers vs Nets in which LeBron, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and James Harden did not play.   This was an NBA Dream Matchup that totally got sank due to players not valuing regular season.  Check the ratings when the playoffs start up again -- that will be the true indication of whether the general population still watch or not.

All those guys are legitimately injured, they aren't just resting.

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This is not a Political subject since it's obvious the ratings are down due to the simple fact that the elite players take 25% or more of the regular season games off.  An example of this is Lakers vs Nets in which LeBron, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and James Harden did not play.   This was an NBA Dream Matchup that totally got sank due to players not valuing regular season.  Check the ratings when the playoffs start up again -- that will be the true indication of whether the general population still watch or not.

All those guys are legitimately injured, they aren't just resting.

They are extending their absence from the game well beyond the time that it takes someone to recover from said injury.  I don't necessarily disagree with their strategy to make home court advantage secondary versus going into the playoffs fully healthy and well rested but it's not good for the game.   This is magnified since the elite players are only on a few teams (meaning teams with 2 to 3 NBA all stars).  Back in they day, any given team would have perhaps 2 star players so there was a balance that also helps with ratings.

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I don't watch college basketball any more, either.   I tried to watch the NCAA tournament, but I got bored.  I think maybe basketball in general needs a full arena of screaming fans more than other sports do.

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This is not a Political subject since it's obvious the ratings are down due to the simple fact that the elite players take 25% or more of the regular season games off.  An example of this is Lakers vs Nets in which LeBron, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and James Harden did not play.   This was an NBA Dream Matchup that totally got sank due to players not valuing regular season.  Check the ratings when the playoffs start up again -- that will be the true indication of whether the general population still watch or not.

Occam's Razor would point in the other direction

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Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.

All those guys are legitimately injured, they aren't just resting.

They are extending their absence from the game well beyond the time that it takes someone to recover from said injury.  I don't necessarily disagree with their strategy to make home court advantage secondary versus going into the playoffs fully healthy and well rested but it's not good for the game.   This is magnified since the elite players are only on a few teams (meaning teams with 2 to 3 NBA all stars).  Back in they day, any given team would have perhaps 2 star players so there was a balance that also helps with ratings.

Anything remotely backing up this statement?

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They are extending their absence from the game well beyond the time that it takes someone to recover from said injury.  I don't necessarily disagree with their strategy to make home court advantage secondary versus going into the playoffs fully healthy and well rested but it's not good for the game.   This is magnified since the elite players are only on a few teams (meaning teams with 2 to 3 NBA all stars).  Back in they day, any given team would have perhaps 2 star players so there was a balance that also helps with ratings.

Anything remotely backing up this statement?

You mean like this?   As I noted above, I don't blame them I'm just saying that it's destroying the regular season....

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/antho...y-vs-mavs/

"The prognosis originally called for him to return around the All-Star break, but the Lakers have exercised an abundance of caution with their superstar big man."

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