Bob Donnan/USA Today Sports
The NBA has a regular season problem. We are into round two in the playoffs and we have already had a bunch of upsets. The Bucks got embarrassingly bounced in the first round with the Grizzlies and Kings also being higher seeds that got upset. This is great for playoff basketball but it creates a huge problem for the regular season. Let me explain.
The NBA Regular Season Problem
Here’s the question the upsets bring. Does the regular season matter? Teams played 82 games and got home-court advantage while other teams struggled throughout the season. Some even openly talked about not caring about the regular season. Jimmy Butler didn’t look great in the regular season but has been downright dominant in the playoffs. The Warriors looked like they took games off, especially on the road. The Lakers battled through injuries but often LeBron James took games off to rest. This is not great for the NBA for regular season viewers.
Should We Care About The Regular Season?
If the players do not care about the regular season, why should the fans? Yes, the playoffs have been incredibly entertaining. Watching Butler activate playoff mode and take down the juggernaut one seed was great entertainment. I cannot tell you how excited I am to watch Steph Curry and LeBron James square off in another series. However, if the seeding doesn’t matter, what is the incentive for me as a fan to watch the regular season? Let me give you an example with another sport.
The 2023 NCAA Tournament was full of chaos. A 16 seed beat a 1 seed (Purdue). Florida Atlantic University, a 9 seed, made it to the Final Four. None of the top seeds made it out of the Sweet 16. This made for a great tournament but does not motivate me to watch the regular season. Why should I invest in watching a full year of Purdue basketball for them to get knocked out in a fluke game to an inferior team? I’ll definitely still watch the tournament but I can’t get excited about the regular season.
The risk that the NBA runs is that fans will stop caring about regular season games. Teams may also take nights off. If getting the top seed truly does not matter, teams are incentivized to save their players for the playoffs. This creates an inferior product during the season which risks fans not wanting to watch. If fans don’t watch the regular season, it is a massive hit to the brand.
Possible Fixes
The NBA is already trying to fix this issue in some other ways. The new CBA has a 65-game requirement in order to be eligible for awards. Winning these awards has a massive effect on contracts so players should be incentivized to care more. However, I don’t think this solves the entire problem. One simple fix would be for the top seeds to get to choose their first-round opponent. Let the top seed choose the matchup they feel best about. This gives them a little bit more of an advantage going into the series.
There are some drastic changes the NBA should make to solve the regular season problem. Fewer games would help. Why is the NFL king? Every week matters. Every player goes all out every week and the playoffs feel similar to the regular season. Adam Silver did the opposite with adding the mid-season tournament which adds a game for the two teams that make the final of that tournament. Having fewer games would help but is probably not in the cards.
Solve It Now Before It Becomes A Huge Problem
This year may just be a fluke. Injuries to both the Lakers and the Warriors caused lower seeds to be better than in past years. The Lakers especially were a completely different team at the beginning of the year. The NBA regular season problem isn’t huge right now. However, the NBA should look into ways to solve it before it does become a big deal. Next year’s regular season ratings will be interesting. Will people watch or will they wait for the chaos of the playoffs?
