OPEN THE STRAIT. CLOSE THE STRAIT. WE ARE BLOCKADING. LIFT SANCTIONS. IMPOSE NEW SANCTIONS. JD IS IN PAKISTAN. JD IS NOT IN PAKISTAN. STILL BLOCKADING. WE HAVE AN AGREEMENT. THERE IS NO AGREEMENT THAT IS FAKE NEWS. BOMBING AGAIN SOON (MAYBE)!
The Process was ~10 years ago, and only now are they coming to the conclusion that tanking is existential to the product. Itโs comical, but predictable. One look at the NBA league office and team ownership tells you the sport itself is not the priority.
They are too busy squeezing every dollar out of gambling partnerships and forcing fans to juggle multiple subscriptions just to watch games.
The game, the competition, the integrity all come second. They would rather chase the latest cultural flashpoint than protect the on-court product.
First time Steph would have faced LeBron this season, and possibly one of the last. Nationally-televised game, and he is out due to injury management with only 7 hours of notice before tipoff.
It's not even a Player Participation Policy violation because the Warriors have a back-to-back tomorrow, and Steph qualifies for the veteran years-of-service exception in re: to not appearing in nationally-televised games anyway.
Yes, Steph was actually hurt and missed significant time ... but this is a microcosm of the regular season thus far, the state of the business, and if you can't tell: incredibly disappointing. Again.
Can't even begin to imagine how much $ people paid for tickets to this.