Here's Why The 65-Game Rule Is Good For The NBA
Picture this: you pay almost 300 dollars to take yourself and your child to a basketball game. You live near Atlanta so naturally, you buy tickets for an Atlanta Hawks game. They happen to be playing the Los Angeles Lakers and your child just loves LeBron James. Your child is so excited to be able to see their idol play right in front of them. After buying food for the both of you, which was not cheap, the both of you take your seats right before the announcers introduce the starting lineups.
However, LeBron has yet to be announced in the starting five. He is not even in uniform. He is sitting on the sidelines wearing stylish clothing. Upon realizing that LeBron is not playing that game, you must break the news to your kid. They become reasonably upset that they cannot see their hero play and you feel like you just blew 300 dollars.
Basketball's issue
This is an example of what happens when superstar players want to sit out for games, even when they are perfectly healthy. We are entering an era where people care more about players than the teams themselves, and that is perfectly fine. However, when people spend money to see their favorite player do their job and play basketball, it is disheartening to watch them lounge from the sidelines and act as a cheerleader.
It also seems like this is the only sport that has this absence issue. You never see DK Metcalf or Jared Goff take off because they do not want to play in an underwhelming city. Unless a player is injured, there should be no reason that basketball players are not on the court.
What is The 65 game rule, and Why it Matters
The 65-game rule imposed this season, forces the players that were previously taking off, actually to care about their attendance. This rule states that star players must play in 65 games to win awards such as MVP or qualify for All-NBA. These awards also come with bonuses to their already absurd salary. The rules also make sure that the away game absences balance with the home game absences, so players have less of an ability to pick and choose where they play. If they are getting paid millions of dollars to play basketball, they should be playing basketball.
The average NBA ticket price is 94 dollars. While that may seem like nothing to a player receiving over one million dollars a year, it is quite an investment for the average family to go to a game to watch their favorite team play. Kobe Bryant even mentioned it in an interview, saying “What about the fans that saved up to watch me play just once?” In his 18-year career, Kobe only missed 112 games. Compare that to Anthony Davis’ five-year career with the Lakers, and Davis’ 88 missed games seem astronomical.
Bringing Them Back to Reality
I hope that this new rule continues to stay for seasons to come. Basketball players need to remember why they were hired; to play basketball. They need the discipline that got them to the league to continue after they made it. They also need to come down to Earth and realize people have saved up to be able to watch these athletes do what no Average Joe could do, play in the NBA.
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