Hidden within the Halloween decorations and changing of seasons, lies the one redeeming truth behind the coming of winter. Blessings be upon us, as the professional basketball season is right around the corner.
Finally, the doldrums of the seven-month baseball season are coming to a close. The initial catharsis of football returning has worn off and many college and some professional teams are already eliminated from playoff contention.
Basketball is back to bring us hope and reinvigorate our culture. A season full of disrespectful dunks, electric rookies and blooper reel free throws from DeAndre Jordan and Dwight Howard is just days away.
In years past, the casual fan has always had reason to ignore basketball for large parts of the season. Eighty-two game seasons in the NBA are bound to have some terrible games. Replete with resting superstars and tanking teams, and the excessive numbers of timeouts that make some games unnecessarily long.
NBA free agency has built a menagerie of bandwagon-worthy superteams in the Western Conference, while changing allegiances and the continued omnipotence of LeBron James will provide more intrigue in the East.
Strictly based on the prospective rise in entertainment value, we all should be exalting basketball’s return and flock to get tickets.
This year, however, it is even more important to pay attention. This year is different, as both the on-court product and the off-court culture of both leagues have become must-watch media.
Neither the MLB nor the NFL can claim the massive culture fostered by the NBA that lends itself to everything from the recent political turmoil to generation-defining video games. That influence will continue to occupy the public’s conscience inside and outside of stadiums. Paying attention provides critical context.
Outside of international soccer, there really isn’t a sports league that commands global, pan-generational fervor every month of the year like the NBA. That universal and uninterrupted appeal took center stage this year, as the league’s biggest stars used their platforms to take stands on political and cultural talking points.
Kevin Durant and Gregg Popovich spoke fervently about their support for Colin Kaepernick and share his desire for action against racial profiling and violence. Damian Lillard assured the fans that his professional rapping career is on schedule with a second album. And of course, the Ball family seemed to make a new headline every second with outrageous claims, highlight reels and unprecedented brand building techniques.
Each contributes to the culture, on or immediately around the court. That isn’t even close to where it stops.
Basketball’s massive cultural following extends far beyond the courts and gyms, and that reason alone should be enough to convince everyone, not just fans, to pay attention.
Cultural icons like Drake, Jay Z and Spike Lee are staples of the sidelines in Toronto, Brooklyn and New York respectively, and basketball as a culture has inspired some of the art they create. Even the fans that appreciate and consume their works but do not follow the NBA are plugged into the culture by osmosis.
The NBA is somewhat like a sports version of Game of Thrones, in that it features dozens of narratives, weekly entertainment and all the discussion fodder one could ever need. There is truly something for everyone. There are athletes that stick to sports. There are icons that dazzle on the court and leverage their influence for good off of it. There are even more than a few self-proclaimed intellectuals that claim to know why we only use 10 percent of our brains or why the Earth is flat, for the ‘awakened’ fan.
Not too long ago, I wrote a column emphasizing the importance of paying attention to the world around us. The NBA is culturally consequential enough to be on everyone’s radar. It is entirely possible that some may not enjoy the sport as much as others, but it provides very important context that adds to discussions about so many different nodes in popular culture.
Didn’t quite understand every minute reference in all of that? Buckle up and tune in to this year’s edition of the NBA, because the culture is coming soon to a screen and Twitter feed near you. You don’t want to miss it.
Jonah Baker can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @jonahpbaker