There are lots of NHL traditions - what about the NBA?

[dishcomm]

No my statement was not childish it was a joke, hence the smilie. So get over it.

And sorry but Basketball is played by far more people and enjoyed viewing by far more people then the NHL. If the NHL was worth anything the TV stations would make room for it. Fact is, theyve had the NHL on networks before but the ratings were so bad they couldnt keep it.

Participation is not the topic.
Your staement about viewing applies if you throw in viewership of NCAA hoops. IMO NCAA basketball is a supoerior product to the NBA and the ratings and attendance show it.
This subject matter of the thread is why does the NBA not have tradions that other sports, particularly the NHL has.
You like NBA ball. Fine. You're in a rather limited demographic.
Fact is the NBA had a solid network tv contract for decades with CBS. That was when the NBA was a great game. It is not anything close to what it used to be.

 

[dishcomm]

How come whenever there is a NBA related thread, all the NHL fan boys come in here to bash the sport and tell us why the NHL is so much better than the NBA? What is this, a competition to see which is the 3rd least popular sport?! Come on kids. Grow up.

WHy is discussing the facts, negative ones in this instance, labled "bashing"?

 

[Lkr]

I think a pretty big tradition is the NHL fans getting insecure because nobody wants to cover their sport on TV, so they come in here and whine

 

[dishcomm]

I think a pretty big tradition is the NHL fans getting insecure because nobody wants to cover their sport on TV, so they come in here and whine

MY you are an expert at missing the point.
How in the world did you get so good at it?

 

[riffjim4069]

I think a pretty big tradition is the NHL fans getting insecure because nobody wants to cover their sport on TV, so they come in here and whine

Just to be fair...the Canadian viewers needs to be included since both leagues have sports teams north of the border. Given this demographic the NHL pulls in a larger television audience than the NBA. Additionally, Gary Bettman almost single handedly destroyed the NHL due to his ineptness...the league is just starting to recover from his moneyshines. Oh, here's a good article on fan enthusiasm... NHL vs. NBA: Hockey winning in attendance, fan enthusiasm? - Puck Daddy - NHL Blog - Yahoo! Sports

Article on NBA viewing in Canada

"Then again, the NBA playoffs are barely on the radar up in Canada. (TSN's two playoff games have averaged a paltry 67,500. Rogers Sportsnet has carried three games averaging 55,000 viewers. The Score's average for its first five broadcasts is 21,000."

Now let's look at the NHL Playoff ratings in Canada...

"According to the NHL, CBC is averaging 1,268,000 viewers for 10 broadcasts through April 18, a 33 per cent increase over last season's average of 951,000 viewers. Meanwhile, TSN is averaging 992,000 viewers for nine telecasts over the same period, a 112 per cent increase over last year (467,000 viewers). "

Again, both leagues have Canadian teams so you must include ratings north of the border in order to make a fair comparison.

Oh, and you need to include the local television markets (e.g., Fox Sports) ratings since Versus (while getting better) is still a joke compared to a channel like TNT. For examples, the Chicago and Detroit are markets are each reaching 400,000 homes..and even non-traditional hockey towns like Washington DC games are reaching 300,000 homes this playoff season.

http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=525443

 

[dishcomm]

Bettman...This is the person that stated there were too many teams in the NY Metro market. His statement was published in the papers... Right in the middle of the NJ Devils run to their first of three Stanley Cup wins.
Ironically, both the Rangers and Isles missed the playoffs that year. Bettman was leaning toward enticing then Devils owners to move the team Nashville, TN...
Bettman got his wish when the NHL expanded to Nashville. The Preds have been doing fairly well in regular season play and attendance is reasonable. All this while the Islanders have failed to succeed, still play in an antiquated building and have yet to find ownership that is willing to spend the kind of money it takes to keep elite players. The Rangers swimming in money can't seem to get out of first gear no matter which mercenary they pay.
Not a bash on the Rangers or Islanders, but an example of how Bettman's comments were so off the mark.

 

[Digital Dude]

The Sharks, (and other teams) salute the fans at center ice after home games, they also autograph sticks for the top 3 stars of the game and skate out to give the autographed sticks to kids after the game.
The NBA????