At 26 years old, I won't dare say I know the sport like the back of my hand. The brand of NBA basketball I have come to know is that of Micheal Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, who were gunning for their first three-peat, almost the default team of a 90's kid getting to know the game by himself. I was excited by Space Jam and for a time (actually, maybe until now) thought that those were the actual events that transpired while MJ took his leave from basketball.
| Except for MJ's last dunk, I thought this was almost true |
Later on, I was able to read about historical games and actually watch quite a few of them. The really grainy ones, I cannot endure watching a whole game of, but the 80's basketball was something I could still enjoy watching.
That said, I think that the 80's was when Magic and Larry took the torch from Dr. J and ran with it. Later, Jordan took it and made it his time. After his 6th championship, that was when a new era started, an era that I would dub the "Next" Era.
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| MJ took over the league after these two |
When Larry and Magic retired, no one was asking who the next Larry or the next Magic was; all people knew was that there was Michael. When Micheal retired the second time, all people cared about was saying who the "next" Jordan was going to be. Every athletic young player exciting enough to be cheered for was dubbed "the next Jordan" or something, but no one actually ended up being "the next Jordan". It was a time when players were not appreciated enough as themselves, but rather criticized because of what they lacked that Jordan had.
On Retirements, and The "Next" Era Ending
A recent chain of events have made me realize that the "next" era is almost coming to an end. Kobe got injured, and we'll be coming in to a season where we won't see the uber-competitve Bryant wearing a Lakers jersey on opening night. Tim Duncan told LeBron in 2003 that "one day" the league will be his, but it was his time that time. With the Spurs' loss in this year's NBA Finals, it almost seems Duncan's words were prophetic. Co-Rookies of the Year Grant Hill and Jason Kidd retired in the offseason. Recently, Allen Iverson decided to finally call it quits after not having a team sign him. Tracy McGrady also called it quits.
I'm not saying that the new brand of basketball isn't fun to watch, all I'm saying is that it's not as fun as it used to be. We have transitioned from the era that may have contributed to the inception of the word "swag" to this era of a more "diplomatic" NBA, where a superstar's post-game interview will never leave out the line "the other team played great, we were luck to have this win". We are done with players crossing up defenders and stepping over them, finger wagging after a block, staredowns or point-downs after a poster dunk, trash talking then knocking down a game winner, and the genuine hatred of teams or players against opposing teams that makes a rivalry game actually feel like a rivalry game.
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| "Swag" |
You see, those rivalries, those trash talking, and the "swag" are those that made basketball more than just a game for someone like me, who grew up and learned basketball at a relatively young age. Those are some of the reasons why some fans can't stand some teams, i.e. Celtics and Lakers fans, and I dare say Sacramento of 2000's against the Lakers (I curse you, Robert Horry). Those are the same reasons why we were excited to see players dunk on legitimate shot blockers (a breed that seems to be dying), and vice versa. Those are the same reasons why we want to wait for players to fail because they seem to think too highly of themselves, only to silence critics with an incredible game to back up his words. It was a time when the best players owned up to losses than whine in interviews about not having enough help.
Today, we could have had a rivalry like that of Bird and Magic when LeBron and Melo came to the league, but they chose to have the kind of relationship Bird and Magic had AFTER they retired rather than when they were on opposite ends of the court. We have Chris Paul, arguably the best point guard in the league today, saying that the Clippers are Blake Griffin's team. We have role players talking trash that they can't back up when they're on the floor. Players love each other so much that the best players would rather team up than try to beat the other. The best players on the team always say it's a "team effort" when they win, and whine that their teammates need to step up when they lose.
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| What could've been a great rivalry has become somewhat of a "Cool Story Bro" feel to it |
The "Next" era is coming to an end, and it is evidenced by the fact that Allen Iverson can't get a call from a team, and TMac has been reduced to the Matt Bonner-Brian Scalabrini level of fan pops. "Team-first" players are more venerated and respected, and while they still bring an exciting brand of basketball, I think, it hasn't been as much fun for me as it was before. It has become difficult to hate on anyone now, that when I watch games, I'm almost torn who to cheer for. The recently concluded NBA Finals will go down as one of the best Finals series ever played, but it was as painful for me as it was enjoyable; I cheered for my favorite player in Dwyane Wade, but I didn't have the heart to see such a nice guy like Tim Duncan lose that one.
At this point, I would like to thank the players of the "Next" era. To those who have retired, and those who are continuing their careers in a reduced or transformed role, thank you for igniting a passion for basketball in me. All those years of trying to prove that you are not "the next Jordan" but the first of who you are have given me countless games of one-upsmanship that I enjoyed immensely. But alas, everything must come to an end, and all I can hope for is that your own "Attitude Era" will have a revival of sorts in the future. It's no fun when Roger Mason,Jr. gets destroyed by LeBron James after saying he's overrated. I'll hope that one day, legitimate superstars would claim their team and challenge the rest of the league, as you did in your time.
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| I'm hoping he backs up his words and make a run at the MVP title |
We are now in a time when Derrick Rose's proclamation that he is "the best player in the NBA" is met with ridicule than a legitimate claim, and when players like Brandon Jennings predict a future he can't even back up. To Rose, I say: back it up, boy, and bring attitude and "swagger" back to the NBA that the new basketball fans seem to no longer experience. By all means, shut all your critics up with an amazing season, so that the fans of this new brand of basketball can understand why the fans who grew up in the "Next" era are nostalgic about all these retirements.
And to Jennings, I would like to tweak a couple of popular viral lines to share to you; "sumwagger ng ayon sa tamang galing". BRO??
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