I am thinking about writing a research paper about the decline in popularity of the NBA since Jordans' retirement. I plan on making the point that the decline in popularity coincides with an increase in athleticism (dunking) and a decrease in actual basketball skills (jump shooting, dribbling, passing).
Maybe i would make a point that players are rewarded for making plays now even if it comes at the cost of mistakes. For example if a player does something exciting, he can make a few turnovers without penalty to him. So this makes the game sloppier. (I sound like scott skiles)
Anyways do you guys think this can make a good 8-10 page paper? And also can you lead me in the right direction to find stats that would help me make my point?
Thanks
OT: Decline in popularity of NBA (research paper)
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OT: Decline in popularity of NBA (research paper)
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mattyj912
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kyrv
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Just a thought, but if it is research, maybe do the paper starting out as "the NBA post-Jordan" and see where that leads you.
That way if you find information that does not support or even contradicts your theory, you still have a paper.
Go Valpo! Vikings! Crusaders! Or something!
And good luck.
I would google some of the keywords and look for articles and statistics. Others can hopefully be more useful, I realize I'm not helping much.
That way if you find information that does not support or even contradicts your theory, you still have a paper.
Go Valpo! Vikings! Crusaders! Or something!
And good luck.
I would google some of the keywords and look for articles and statistics. Others can hopefully be more useful, I realize I'm not helping much. Bill Walton wrote: Keep the music playing.
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Action Paxson
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Well I would say the quality of basketball has improved since Jordan retired. Ball movement is better for sure and the tempo is faster. I would say look at the dominant teams and what cities they play for. The Knicks and Bulls have been average teams. The Lakers were good but consistently its been San Antonio, Detroit, New Jersey in the Finals. That is why IMO. If the Knicks were a 60 win team and the Bulls had LeBron I really don't know if there would be much of a drop off.
And people would watch just to see Jordan. You get that with LeBron a little but it isn't the same. I wouldn't say it has much to do with basketball at all. The 90's may have been the worst era of basketball in the last 30 or so years.
And people would watch just to see Jordan. You get that with LeBron a little but it isn't the same. I wouldn't say it has much to do with basketball at all. The 90's may have been the worst era of basketball in the last 30 or so years.
Chaos isn't a pit. Chaos is a ladder.
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Art Vandelay
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Go off what Kyrv said and look at tv ratings(especially playoffs/finals), ticket sales, merch sales, etc.. because if it's research, you don't have too much else to go off. Might want to incorporate the strike factor with the Jordan factor, cause I think they were pretty equally hard hitting against the NBA(much like it was for a bit with baseball).
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Art Vandelay
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MrSparkle
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I disagree. I watch 90s Knicks, Pacers, Heat, Magic, Rockets, Spurs, Bulls, Jazz, etc... and their ball movement, low-post play and defense looks really organized, the chemistry is top notch, and the game seems much smarter than what I see most of the time these days.
I think a big part of it is the death of the true pivot man. Can you imagine Howard if he spent more of his youth developing Hakeem and Kareem post scoring technique? The Magic would be running the offense entirely through him, and they would probably be comfortably dominating the league, not going up and down.
I feel like it's absurd criticizing youth basketball training programs, because it theoretically should be improving as the game "evolves", but at the same time, you have to wonder? Wtf is happening?
I think the isolation driving/scoring has reached a new level of dominance. There is almost nothing you can do to stop Wade or Lebron from driving to the basket and scoring on you. They have the strength and ball-handling to get in there, and they don't even have to have any acrobatic moves, they can more often than not muscle in a lay-up. I do not think that Jordan, Pippen, etc. played like this.
On the other hand, the team concept, understanding defenses, passing, mid-range shooting, post scoring... it has gone down-hill. I really do believe it has, because more stress has been made on making a physical, strong, athletic, dominant specimen of the NBA body, as opposed to the skill. Lebron at 240 lb is a freak. So is Howard. Can't blame the trainers; they are dominating. But I think they are also failing long-term, because they don't seem like very smart offensive coordinators, like Magic, Pippen, Hakeem and other legends were.
I think a big part of it is the death of the true pivot man. Can you imagine Howard if he spent more of his youth developing Hakeem and Kareem post scoring technique? The Magic would be running the offense entirely through him, and they would probably be comfortably dominating the league, not going up and down.
I feel like it's absurd criticizing youth basketball training programs, because it theoretically should be improving as the game "evolves", but at the same time, you have to wonder? Wtf is happening?
I think the isolation driving/scoring has reached a new level of dominance. There is almost nothing you can do to stop Wade or Lebron from driving to the basket and scoring on you. They have the strength and ball-handling to get in there, and they don't even have to have any acrobatic moves, they can more often than not muscle in a lay-up. I do not think that Jordan, Pippen, etc. played like this.
On the other hand, the team concept, understanding defenses, passing, mid-range shooting, post scoring... it has gone down-hill. I really do believe it has, because more stress has been made on making a physical, strong, athletic, dominant specimen of the NBA body, as opposed to the skill. Lebron at 240 lb is a freak. So is Howard. Can't blame the trainers; they are dominating. But I think they are also failing long-term, because they don't seem like very smart offensive coordinators, like Magic, Pippen, Hakeem and other legends were.