The NBA is soft, and terrible officiating has a lot to do with it. Players are fined and ejected for harmless acts. However, the players are to blame too. Nowadays, superstars miss games because they, well, feel like it.
In the 1990s, basketball was a physical sport dominated by defense and elite athleticism. Now, every game is a 3-point shooting contest, and players don’t play good defense.
During a recent episode on his podcast “Podcast P”, Los Angeles Clippers shooting guard Paul George, spoke on the issue.
“Handchecking is a foul now. It’s killing the game a little bit. Now we can’t be defenders. You can’t defend as well as we used to. You can get in the ball in pick-and-rolls like you can be aggressive, you can be physical. You can’t do none of that now. The offensive player has the advantage now.”
Aside from calling soft shooting fouls, NBA referees are prone to handing out technical fouls seemingly without reason. In a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves On April 9, 2021, Jayson Tatum got a technical foul for bouncing the ball. After the referee called a foul on Tatum, he grabbed the ball and bounced it above his head. Tatum was obviously upset with the call, but he did not lash out at the officiating crew. He just bounced the ball in anger. That should not be enough to warrant a technical foul.
According to Spotrac.com, NBA referees have given out 778 technical fouls this season as of March 15, 2023. Each technical foul is paired with an automatic fine, which has amassed to $1,710,000 dollars.
The NBA is soft partly due to the officiating, but the players have a role in it too. A common phrase used in today’s game is “load management”. Teams will rest healthy players to preserve them for the playoffs, which is ridiculous. Imagine going to a game to see your favorite player, and he rests not because he is injured, but because he feels like it? It’s a complete shame.
People that work regular 9 to 5 jobs don’t get to take off work just because they feel like it. Furthermore, NBA players get paid millions of dollars annually; the least they can do is play in the games, and if they don’t wanna play for themselves, at least play for the fans.
Los Angeles Clippers superstar, Kawhi Leonard, has only played in 47 out of the 76 games the Clippers have played this season, and he isn’t even injured. The Clippers and Leonard just want to stay healthy for the playoffs. Imagine Michael Jordan or Larry Bird missing games to rest for the playoffs? It would never happen.
This is the new NBA and it will continue to get softer unless commissioner Adam Silver does something about it. However, it does not seem like he has any plans to change the game in the near future.
polcema20@bonaventure.edu
