The NBA received some positive feedback from their decision to build more rest into the '17-18 schedule in hopes of limiting the number of players who sit out regular-season games, but many commentators on the afternoon sports TV talk shows do not believe the league went far enough. L.A. Times columnist Bill Plaschke noted the schedule is “only reducing one back-to-back per team” which is “not going to be enough.” N.Y. Daily News’ Frank Isola said, “Enough placating the players. How long are we going to make the season now? Training camp is starting September 23rd (and) we’re going to go all the way into June. Enough. Just shorten the season.” ESPN’s Sarah Spain said the move is “going to help a little bit but in the end, the only real change that you can make in terms of the big stars resting is shorten the season and that’s a money thing and they’re not going to do it.” ESPN’s Israel Gutierrez: "This clearly is just about the money here. They’re not worried about home fans. They’re worried about the big TV games, and they’re not even considering taking games off of the schedule” (“Around The Horn,” ESPN, 8/9). FS1’s Jason Whitlock said the players “don’t want to play 82 games, but that’s not something you can really address until there’s a collective bargaining agreement.” Whitlock: “Maybe this is a step towards that path and the next time the CBA is up, they can come to an agreement where they can get this schedule down to something the players want because, again, they don’t want to play 82” (“Speak for Yourself,” FS1, 8/9). ESPN’s Pablo Torre: “It’s pretty clear that 82 games is just way too many.” ESPN’s Bomani Jones said “there’s something to be said” for teams not to rest all their stars in the same game and “it’s fair for the league to say, ‘Could you do this when these games are off-Broadway, not when we’re on live television on Sunday on ABC.’ Those are the things the league is probably most concerned with” (“PTI,” ESPN, 8/9). ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt: “Frankly, we pay (NBA Commissioner) Adam Silver and the NBA far too much money to get primetime programming absent the stars that attract viewers. But Silver is a forward thinker and steps have been taken to fix the issue. Players will still rest -- it’s a long season -- but the most egregious scheduling has been scaled back” (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 8/10).
MY SUPER SWEET 16: THE RINGER's Jonathan Tjarks wrote the NBA has been slow to address the gap between the league's two conferences, as well as the "complaints about the one-and-done rule and tanking." While there is "plenty of debate about how much addressing any of these issues would improve the on-court product, most of the arguments, pro or con, are beside the point." The NBA is a business, and everything it does is "based on maximizing the revenue of its 30 ownership groups." Silver "will not push any proposal that would hurt their bottom line, and it wouldn’t make a difference if he did," as he only has as "much power as the owners give him." There are "plenty of owners in the West" who would be open to changing the playoffs to include the top 16 teams overall instead of the top eight from each conference. Tjarks: "But why would their counterparts in the East vote for something that’s not in the best interest of their franchises?" The benefits of a "deep playoff run go well beyond the extra revenue from tickets and merchandise sales." It "boosts the image of the franchise, creates lifelong fans, and generates the goodwill necessary to gouge cities for sweetheart arena deals." While some owners "might be willing to give up money in the short-term to make more down the road, few people in any walk of life have that type of vision" (THERINGER.com, 8/8). NBA Exec VP/Communications Mike Bass in a statement to THE DAILY said, “After careful consideration and deliberation, conference realignment was rejected because it would have created a considerable increase in regular season and playoff travel for all teams, not due to the concerns of Eastern Conference owners.” Bass noted conference realignment would have resulted in an additional 5,000 miles of per team of travel during the regular season (THE DAILY).
