AFTER EMPTY SEATS, NBA HAS FIVE WEEKEND OPENER SELLOUTS
After only six of the NBA's first 23 home openers sold
out through Thursday night, the league rebounded by
announcing sellouts for its five weekend openers, including
the Wizards, Pistons, Pacers, T'Wolves and Bucks (THE
DAILY). Saturday's sellout at the Target Center was the
T'Wolves' first opening-night sellout since '92 (STAR
TRIBUNE, 11/6). Meanwhile, in Detroit, Joe Falls wrote that
the Pistons' sellout crowd of 22,076 for Friday's game came
despite "some empty seats ... around 2,000." Falls: "I
think the turnout was a direct tribute to [President of
Basketball Operations] Joe Dumars. Everyone likes this man.
More so, they trust him" (DETROIT NEWS, 11/5). Meanwhile,
in Phoenix, Bob Young writes that the crowd of 16,735 for
last night's Rockets-Suns game at America West Arena is the
"smallest announced home crowd the Suns have played for"
since the arena opened in '92 (AZ REPUBLIC, 11/6).
WHOSE IDEA WAS IT? In DC, Thomas Boswell wrote about
the Wizards home opener on Friday night and noted that
Wizards F Juwan Howard "gave a classy welcoming speech" to
the sellout crowd. Boswell: "It was the sort of first-cabin
touch you'd expect from an operation with Michael Jordan in
charge" (WASHINGTON POST, 11/4). But in N.Y., Peter Vecsey
wrote, "Gag me with a chain saw. I hate to be the one to
burst Boswell's hero-worshipping bubble, but a player from
each team has been making identical speeches since the
lockout ended. The idea, concocted by the league, ahem, not
Jordan, is a thank you to the fans" (N.Y. POST, 11/5).
THE EARLY LINE: In Miami, Barry Jackson wrote, "If
America still loves this game, it's hard to tell. Less than
a week into the season, the NBA should be alarmed by
surprisingly low attendance in several cities." Jackson
cited two "likely reasons": ticket prices are "too high for
much of the league's grass-roots fan base," as well as
"mediocrity" throughout the league (MIAMI HERALD, 11/5). In
S.F., C.W. Nevius: "The NBA flung open its doors this week
to a brand new season. Let's just say that no one was
trampled rushing through the turnstiles." Nevius added,
"The NBA lost touch with its base. The first, and biggest
problem, is the price of tickets, which is ridiculous" (S.F.
CHRONICLE, 11/4). On "The Sports Reporters," ESPN's John
Feinstein said, "Michael Jordan was a giant band-aid that
disguised the fact that the NBA game has become static and
boring." Feinstein noted the number of non-sellouts during
the opening week and said, "that's trouble." Detroit Free
Press columnist Mitch Albom: "If you wanted to fix the NBA,
the first thing you'd do is destroy the ESPN highlight,
because that is what every player now plays for. ... It's a
very unsatisfying experience to go to an NBA game these
days" ("The Sports Reporters," 11/5). FSN's Alex Flanagan
reported that the NBA is "producing a product that fewer and
fewer fans want to watch." Flanagan: "After years of
skyrocketing upwards, the NBA now seems to be on a downward
spiral. Yet no one involved with the league wants to admit
it" ("Olbermann Evening News," 11/5).
TEAM NOTES: Pacers GM David Kahn said season-ticket
sales "are just a hair under where we were last year," but
declined to "be more specific" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 11/4).
...WGN's Dan Roan profiled SFX Sports Group Chair David Falk
and called him "the prime retailer of NBA basketball
talent." Falk, the agent for Bulls F Elton Brand, said, "We
could have stocked Elton with an All-Star team. ... We told
them ways we thought we could bring some major free agents
to Chicago, but those ideas weren't embraced" (WGN, 11/4).
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