NFT: Warner Bros CEO: TNT doesn’t need the NBA

what NBA Teams are doing outside the Knicks.

But I can tell you what's going on with Kyrie Irving.

Thats all you need to know about the NBA these days.

And Silver better find a way to solve it. Take last nights game for example.

Two of the youngest brightest stars in the game and the number 1-2 from the same draft class going up against each other. Only Zion doesn’t play. And the whole thing lacks luster. GS has sat is starters for games. Giannis has taken test games already. Don’t even get me started with Simmons and Kyrie.

People pay huge money to come watch these superstars and for them to take the night off is pathetic.

where I'm pretty sure the Warriors played without Curry, Green, Klay and Wiggins, lol.

NFL & NBA have far more casuals than MLB & NHL. But, the content around the way the NFL & NBA is covered is star QB or NBA star. NBA is very transaction heavy too. I think that resonates well with a national audience.

and the Ewing, Starks and Mason era was my favorite. You could cut the tension between teams like the Bulls-Pistons-Knicks with a knife.

Carmelo Anthony as a Knick franchise player awe helllllll noooo turn that crap off.

The super teams ended it for me. There is so little parity. You can almost pick the EC and WC finals teams accurately every year. Add to that the super star player throw temper tantrums every time they get called for a foul (this one isn't really a new thing, but I notice it a lot more the few times I watch a game.

Also being a wizards fans doesn't help anything.

and then Durant did more damage when he took the easy way out and went to the Warriors and then the Nets with Irving. The bad NBA teams have been bad for a decade or more with very little hope of it changing. Plus as Greg said the game on the floor is a bore to watch most nights. The NBA is a niche product now. A bigger niche than the NHL but still a niche. It's probably going to wind up with a streaming deal like the NHL with local TV regular season/national TV playoff coverage or the MLS where it's 100% streaming in one place.

In comment 15909754 illmatic said:

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He’s going to run that company into the ground with his decisions.

He's fixing the DC Universe. Cavill's back as Supes, so far so good.

but seems like a lot of the big media companies are in the toilet financially, just might be a slight step ahead than his dopey contemporaries.

The talent level is off the charts. It's a great product.
Players taking games of is a real problem though.

More days off between games would cure that but would make it an even longer season. Nobody wants that.

by Warner - plain and simple. I don't know how the NBA impacts Warner's PnL right now, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's underperforming.

My interest in the product has never been lower, especially during the regular season. I find this version of basketball almost as uninteresting as watching a bass fishing competition.

So, if the NBA moves to a streaming service, I will have even less interest. But I'm certain I am not in the NBA's target audience and my opinion is the least of their concerns.

Most nights, it's a three point shooting contest. Yawn.

but they've improved at promoting its product and getting it out there in recent years, while the NBA has stagnated (apart from manufacturing tweets about player movements and team soap operas). Turn to TNT and you see old heads like Barkley and Shaq dissing today's players left and right. Maybe they're right, but if the NBA's flagship program is constantly taking digs at their players, it doesn't help hype the sport. ESPN's NBA coverage is simply unwatchable.

were must watch for me from 2008-2014, but I fell off big time once the Warriors dynasty started up.

I agree with the other commenters here that the threes just make it significantly less interesting to watch. Now I don't really tune in, even for the finals. Is there a more boring offensive possession result than a three pointer?

All the big leagues have issues with the on-field product, but I think NFL is clearly in the best place there. Baseball is at least trying to find solutions, I'm excited to see how it looks without the shift next year.

The change in shot chart shown below sums it up perfect for me.

I love the NBA and I am a nerd who will watch Wolves Magic tonight on League Pass.

TNT is averaging 1.6 million viewers for its Tuesday night NBA games.

AEW Wrestling averages a million viewers, a good demo on Wednesday.

NBA costs a billion dollars.
AEW costs a hundred million dollars (2021-2022). Originally it was 45 mil.

In comment 15909837 ArcadeSlumlord said:

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TNT is averaging 1.6 million viewers for its Tuesday night NBA games. AEW Wrestling averages a million viewers, a good demo on Wednesday. NBA costs a billion dollars. AEW costs a hundred million dollars (2021-2022). Originally it was 45 mil.

Ouch. Hard to get advertisers to pay the freight with those few eyeballs. They must be losing their shirts.

so has college basketball. The style of play isnt watchable, there is zero defense, all 3 pointers, so much less intensity.

The quality of play is terrible, and the quality of the players is less and less. Fundamentals are out the window, its everyone trying to out-athlete the other guy, no one has any understanding of situations and strategies

It is not a good product

When indie wrestlin is almost beating you, you are fucked. NBA went to hard on woke, IMHO, these companies go broke. I am politically indifferent, but when i tune in to the tube, I want an escape a release from this horseshit world we live in. not to be preached to. FUCK that. I stopped watching the NBA in my 20s. nearly 2 decades ago.

In comment 15909882 ArcadeSlumlord said:

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When indie wrestlin is almost beating you, you are fucked. NBA went to hard on woke, IMHO, these companies go broke. I am politically indifferent, but when i tune in to the tube, I want an escape a release from this horseshit world we live in. not to be preached to. FUCK that. I stopped watching the NBA in my 20s. nearly 2 decades ago.

Agree on the overboard woke factor, too. And the 500 different uniforms dont help - you tune in when flipping around the channels and have no idea who is playing

would also watch some other games now I never do.

First, you can probably miss the game up until the last 5 minutes. Then it usually gets interesting. You can probably miss most of the season and start watching the playoffs. Players make way too much money which becomes more problematic when they take these health days or just have too much power.

In terms of the Knicks, while I agree the league really does need a stronger Knick team and the current team does not look like anything special to date. But, 2-3 years ago when they made the playoffs, the Garden was rocking and it seemed like so was the league. A good or at least interesting team here would help.

In comment 15909882 ArcadeSlumlord said:

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When indie wrestlin is almost beating you, you are fucked. NBA went to hard on woke, IMHO, these companies go broke. I am politically indifferent, but when i tune in to the tube, I want an escape a release from this horseshit world we live in. not to be preached to. FUCK that. I stopped watching the NBA in my 20s. nearly 2 decades ago.

If you are resting your chips on AEW to carry the network, you are screwed. Even AEW has seen viewership drop because of their own antics.

the one size fits all dumbed down product,where everything looks the same.You don't even have to watch the games to reach that conclusion,just check the scoreboard.

Than the politics and everything else comes next.

when it would table slam a 80 year old grandma.

The networks certainly measure success in viewership, and the NBA is probably not a good investment for Warner Bros.

For the NBA, success is measured in a number of ways, and they’re enjoying record domestic and international revenue.

Basketball is a distant 3rd for me behind football and baseball. I happen to love the modern game. I thought the low point for the league was the Shaq era Lakers, where he would just elbow his way through defense, end up on the line and air ball free throws.

This last championship was fabulous. Two excellent teams, where the marquee players were all homegrown. Super stars on both teams, making insane shots from parts of the court the last generation of players wouldn’t thinking of shooting from.

It’s funny to read through the lamentations, I read a lot of the same opinions about football and baseball too.

and the NBA would do well. I don't care wtf you have to do their Nosferatu ---get it the fuck done or the NBA will suck for eternity and you'll be there to see it.

Is sad.

I find iso ball boring; I actually like the 3 point attempts, well mainly the way the warriors play it. The ball movement to get the open shots and the way that Curry creates a sliver of space to hit threes.

In comment 15909980 christian said:

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The networks certainly measure success in viewership, and the NBA is probably not a good investment for Warner Bros. For the NBA, success is measured in a number of ways, and they’re enjoying record domestic and international revenue. Basketball is a distant 3rd for me behind football and baseball. I happen to love the modern game. I thought the low point for the league was the Shaq era Lakers, where he would just elbow his way through defense, end up on the line and air ball free throws. This last championship was fabulous. Two excellent teams, where the marquee players were all homegrown. Super stars on both teams, making insane shots from parts of the court the last generation of players wouldn’t thinking of shooting from. It’s funny to read through the lamentations, I read a lot of the same opinions about football and baseball too.

What so funny about reading through the “lamentations”? I’m genuinely curious about that because your post sure comes across as since YOU “happen to love the modern game” you find it funny if others have different opinions on that and have the audacity to express on a message board what exactly they don’t like.

Maybe I’m way off on what you meant. But you reading the same thing about baseball and football is completely irrelevant too. Because it’s also ok to not be happy about those products. Or is it not ok?

It will never catch the NFL on a per game basis but they play a lot more games. I think generationally the NBA is a lot more popular with the younger folks than other sports.

The only reason I turn to TNT is the NBA. If they don't want to pay Charles Barkley and company, I'm sure Amazon or Apple will.

im not saying he is right or wrong, but pretty much the only time i ever turn on TNT is for NBA (maybe a rangers game since some hockey is there now to).

"If you shoot and I shoot then that ain't basketball."

BBS — I’m just saying many BBIers miss the way baseball, football, basketball, college sports etc. used to be more into it and watch way less of each.

Yet all the leagues are taking in a fortune.

It’s probably a sample bias that most of us are in our 30/40/50/60/70s and love nostalgia.

In comment 15910330 christian said:

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BBS — I’m just saying many BBIers miss the way baseball, football, basketball, college sports etc. used to be more into it and watch way less of each. Yet all the leagues are taking in a fortune. It’s probably a sample bias that most of us are in our 30/40/50/60/70s and love nostalgia.

This is so true. It’s nostalgia not necessarily a diminishing product.

Yup Sean. There were a lot of BBIers who thought the NFL was over circa 2017.

I'm watching Edwards go off vs. Orlando. Haha. I love the NBA.

WB can be purchased by NBC/Universal. He’s a fuckin snake.

In comment 15910343 SFGFNCGiantsFan said:

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I'm watching Edwards go off vs. Orlando. Haha. I love the NBA.

I’ve never seen you say a bad word once about the NBA, yet you have criticized the NFL.

It definitely seems people and the media love criticizing the NFL, yet the actions of people don’t match that. Massive ratings every week.

Adam Silver is treated with kid gloves by the media. It’s a strange dynamic.

Sean, the Giants are my favorite sports team. And I love football.

But I do have a problem when I see guys like Jim McMahon not knowing where he puts his keys five minutes ago. That bothers me. But I know I'm complicit because I watch & follow the NFL. It is weird dynamic.

In comment 15910351 Sean said:

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In comment 15910343 SFGFNCGiantsFan said: Quote: I'm watching Edwards go off vs. Orlando. Haha. I love the NBA. I’ve never seen you say a bad word once about the NBA, yet you have criticized the NFL. It definitely seems people and the media love criticizing the NFL, yet the actions of people don’t match that. Massive ratings every week. Adam Silver is treated with kid gloves by the media. It’s a strange dynamic.

There is zero chance he’s as locked in to Minnesota/Orlando as he says he is. It’s likely on in the background or he’s flipping channels and occasionally checks in on that unwatchable monstrosity, lol.

In comment 15910353 SFGFNCGiantsFan said:

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Sean, the Giants are my favorite sports team. And I love football. But I do have a problem when I see guys like Jim McMahon not knowing where he puts his keys five minutes ago. That bothers me. But I know I'm complicit because I watch & follow the NFL. It is weird dynamic.

Come on man. I love ya SF and this is admirable I suppose. But guys like Jim McMahon made that choice themselves and made a fortune doing it. Also, none of these guys would lose one seconds sleep if you or I were hit by a bus tomorrow. There are a ton of people in this world to feel bad for. NFL players living their dream are incredibly far down the list for me. Sorry if this sounds callous. It’s the truth

In comment 15910333 Sean said:

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In comment 15910330 christian said: Quote: BBS — I’m just saying many BBIers miss the way baseball, football, basketball, college sports etc. used to be more into it and watch way less of each. Yet all the leagues are taking in a fortune. It’s probably a sample bias that most of us are in our 30/40/50/60/70s and love nostalgia. This is so true. It’s nostalgia not necessarily a diminishing product.

I have gripes with all sports but I watch all of them still except the NBA. There’s a pretty clear difference in the product compared to previous eras and while my age might play a role i don’t think it’s nostalgia. I enjoyed the 90s and 2000s and was hanging on still by the early 2010s. It’s a completely different game now and an absolute bore.

People complain about change and usually get over it. Basketball is the only one I haven’t been able to and it gets worse by the year.

In comment 15910353 SFGFNCGiantsFan said:

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Sean, the Giants are my favorite sports team. And I love football. But I do have a problem when I see guys like Jim McMahon not knowing where he puts his keys five minutes ago. That bothers me. But I know I'm complicit because I watch & follow the NFL. It is weird dynamic.

That’s fine, but the NFL is adjusting the rules to improve that, but then fans will bitch about the rule changes. In that sense, the NFL can’t win.

I think all of us — Sean, UConn, BBS, and SF are all around the same age -- and came up watching the same eras.

I think it's interesting we have different takes on the quality of each league.

I couldn't stand the early 2000s NBA. Just absolutely hated it. Started to not like the early 2000s NFL, and have started to sour on MLB.

I also think the bug up my butt is probably directly related to how well my favorite team is doing.

In comment 15910387 christian said:

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I think all of us — Sean, UConn, BBS, and SF are all around the same age -- and came up watching the same eras. I think it's interesting we have different takes on the quality of each league. I couldn't stand the early 2000s NBA. Just absolutely hated it. Started to not like the early 2000s NFL, and have started to sour on MLB. I also think the bug up my butt is probably directly related to how well my favorite team is doing.

I think this is very true. The early 2000’s NBA was a weird place. Jordan was wrapping up his career in Washington and you had the Spurs dynasty in full swing. The league was in between Jordan & LeBron.

I think LeBron going to LA hurt the league. I never minded watching the Cavs-Warriors each year, but I’m probably in the minority there.

The NFL is a different sport now. Matt will post old highlights on his BigBlueVCR page and the sport was unrecognizable. Sports evolve and it’s not always bad.

the quality of play of each league is down, except for the NHL - the problem there is the players are better and faster and the goalies (and their equipment) are much bigger and better, but the net is the same size. They need to make the net a little bigger

Baseball, football, and basketball are all much less quality of play than they used to be. Far more athletic, but far less skill for the sport and much much less in basic fundamentals

Basketball was better when everyone had a low post center and the game was played through the post. Now its all 3 pointers and zero defense. It looks like a pick up game at the local YMCA

Football is so afraid of concussion lawsuits that it created a bunch of rules to stop people from hitting each other

Baseball was ruined by analytics, so now they feel they have to change rules to fix it. Speed up the game while adding more and more commercials (which is the main reason for longer games)

In comment 15910395 Sean said:

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I think this is very true. The early 2000’s NBA was a weird place. Jordan was wrapping up his career in Washington and you had the Spurs dynasty in full swing. The league was in between Jordan & LeBron. I think LeBron going to LA hurt the league. I never minded watching the Cavs-Warriors each year, but I’m probably in the minority there. The NFL is a different sport now. Matt will post old highlights on his BigBlueVCR page and the sport was unrecognizable. Sports evolve and it’s not always bad.

I grew up in Southern CA watching highlights of the Chargers and Raiders, and the AFL inspired era. I loved that. I unequivocally love basketball on turf. The 2011 Giants are my favorite team all time of any sport.

I personally think guys running head first into each other is as fun as a tooth ache.

Those guys are ridiculous. So many great young talents in the league right now. More defense would be fun. And they have gotten rid of the Trae Young diving bullshit. They just need to kick it up a notch on those types of rules. Get rid of the flops. Bring back the fights. I want to see civilians getting decked by an angry Ron Artest again...

It’s a big reason I’ve always defended Reese. Fans criticize him for not building up the trenches, but why would he go back to a model of running the ball after Eli’s 2011 season? Reese was correct that the league was heading that way.