OPINION Why are NBA fans so obsessed with the past?

[Bow to Royalty]

Not everyone does this, but a lot do. Why can't people stop talking about the past in the NBA? Not even the recent past. Jordan vs Bron in a 1v1? Could Bron (or any modern player) take the beating the bad boy Pistons dished out? Could this Warriors team beat the 90's bulls?

Why do NBA debates bring up comparisons to players from decades ago so much?

 

[Agent_Ro]

Because those were the “good old days.” People do this all the time with movies, music, tv, etc. They go out of their way to say “yea that’s was good but it was soooooo much better back then.” Selective memory at its finest.

 

[Bow to Royalty]

Because those were the “good old days.” People do this all the time with movies, music, tv, etc. They go out of their way to say “yea that’s was good but it was soooooo much better back then.” Selective memory at its finest.

I hear you, but like you said, everyone looks back at the past like the good ol days. But only when people talk basketball though do they bring up older generations that much.

Julio Jones is a beast. He gets compared to Brown, Beckham, Hopkins, etc. You don't hear a bunch of him being compared to Moss, TO, Rice, etc.

 

[Rubato]

Nothing will ever seem as impactful as what you saw growing up

 

[Bow to Royalty]

Nothing will ever seem as impactful as what you saw growing up

Agreed, but why is only basketball discussed like this? Nobody is asking if Gurley is better than E Smith.

 

[Rubato]

Agreed, but why is only basketball discussed like this? Nobody is asking if Gurley is better than E Smith.

Lol white people still compare every QB to Joe
Montana

But MJ is the reason, if it wasn’t for him you would see basketball on par with all the other sports. He was that transcendent.

It’s like how every baseball writer was obsessed with Babe Ruth up until the steroid era.

 

[Bow to Royalty]

Lol white people still compare every QB to Joe
Montana

But MJ is the reason, if it wasn’t for him you would see basketball on par with all the other sports. He was that transcendent.

It’s like how every baseball writer was obsessed with Babe Ruth up until the steroid era.

I feel like the Montana comparisons only came up recently, and they were about Brady's ring count around SB time. Outside if that it was usually Brady vs Manning.

You're right though. It is usually a MJ comparison.

 

[Remy_LeGermz]

they didnt run the pick and roll all game back in the 90s..




mid range jumpers and guys that can play in the post happened




frail light brights wasnt among the best the league had to offer




:Pathetic:fight me

 

[Peace_79]

I feel like the Montana comparisons only came up recently, and they were about Brady's ring count around SB time. Outside if that it was usually Brady vs Manning.

You're right though. It is usually a MJ comparison.

Lol. Only recently?

Fam. Your anecdotal perspective is not an empirical view of realty. Maybe in your sphere of influence it would appear this way but that’s not objective realty.

White people been comparing QBs to Montana for decades.

 

[Bow to Royalty]

Lol. Only recently?

Fam. Your anecdotal perspective is not an empirical view of realty. Maybe in your sphere of influence it would appear this way but that’s not objective realty.

White people been comparing QBs to Montana for decades.

I'm not saying no person has ever once made a comparison before. But naw, I don't recall a lot of Brees vs Montana comparisons. Same with Aaron Rodgers. And like I said, it was mostly Manning vs Brady when Manning was around.

Who were all these other players being compared to Montana?

 

[DMorgan]

No sport compares its past to its present more than boxing.

Its not even a discussion boxing does that shit more than anybody from the press to the fans.

 

[Bow to Royalty]

No sport compares its past to its present more than boxing.

Its not even a discussion boxing does that shit more than anybody from the press to the fans.

That's a very good point. Now, I don't really know boxing like that, so tell me if I'm wrong. But is that from having less talent? Also, they give less material to talk about. Do most fighters fight more than twice a year? Guys might just need material to talk about.

 

[DMorgan]

That's a very good point. Now, I don't really know boxing like that, so tell me if I'm wrong. But is that from having less talent? Also, they give less material to talk about. Do most fighters fight more than twice a year? Guys might just need material to talk about.

I wouldn't say its from having less talent. I would say it comes from the best fights not being made at the best times. Take Mayweather vs Manny Pac. It took 5-6 years for that fight to be made and when it was finally made both fighters were well past their prime. The quality of the fight showed that. Now they both made more money when they fought than what they would've made if they had fought when both were closer to their physical primes. I want them to get paid but I also want the best quality product for my money. Also because fights take so long to happen if they even happen the press and the fans aren't so sure about how good to great these fighters are because they feel they aren't or don't challenge themselves like fighters did in the past. They kind of have a point.

Back in the day to make real big money fighting you had to fight the best guy that everybody wanted to see said person fight. Now that ain't the case. You have some dudes fighting folks who barely in the top 20 rankings for said division but they star fighter is getting paid millions for that BS fight. So what incentive do they have to actually fight the best and toughest fights?

There are fighters who fight more than twice a year. Some star fighters would prefer to fight at least 3 times a year but with promoters and tv contracts it usually doesn't work out to well for them fighting 3 times year. Too many times they only fighting once a year.

 

[Duwop]

To be honest, instead of obsessing, I just stopped watching. Basketball lost its appeal for me like 2003-2004

They just started changing too much, I didn't like the identity the league was taking. I didn't like the new crop of players.

And I felt like the world jumped on LeBron's nuts too early. Shit was a huge turn off to the game.

 

[Duwop]

I hear you, but like you said, everyone looks back at the past like the good ol days. But only when people talk basketball though do they bring up older generations that much.

Julio Jones is a beast. He gets compared to Brown, Beckham, Hopkins, etc. You don't hear a bunch of him being compared to Moss, TO, Rice, etc.

They do it in boxing way more

 

[Duwop]

I wouldn't say its from having less talent. I would say it comes from the best fights not being made at the best times. Take Mayweather vs Manny Pac. It took 5-6 years for that fight to be made and when it was finally made both fighters were well past their prime. The quality of the fight showed that. Now they both made more money when they fought than what they would've made if they had fought when both were closer to their physical primes. I want them to get paid but I also want the best quality product for my money. Also because fights take so long to happen if they even happen the press and the fans aren't so sure about how good to great these fighters are because they feel they aren't or don't challenge themselves like fighters did in the past. They kind of have a point.

Back in the day to make real big money fighting you had to fight the best guy that everybody wanted to see said person fight. Now that ain't the case. You have some dudes fighting folks who barely in the top 20 rankings for said division but they star fighter is getting paid millions for that BS fight. So what incentive do they have to actually fight the best and toughest fights?

There are fighters who fight more than twice a year. Some star fighters would prefer to fight at least 3 times a year but with promoters and tv contracts it usually doesn't work out to well for them fighting 3 times year. Too many times they only fighting once a year.

Fighters got smarter.

Back in the day, they'd take whatever money was given them, and whatever date given them, with whatever prep time they had available.


Many fighters went out there well under 100% and for peanuts.

And because it was mostly brown and blacks it wasn't a big deal.

That's why so many fighters aged horribly.

Then comes guys like Leonard, de la Hoya, Mayweather Jr.... High demand fighters that refused to fight on the promoters terms, but dictated their terms.

If the fight didn't pay enough it didn't happen.

If they didn't have time to nurse injuries and come out 100% fight didn't happen.

If they didn't get the gloves and ring size they wanted... Fight didn't happen.

Back in the day fighters had little to no voice, and they ironically get remembered as the greatest and most popular members of the sport, because they put their own well being second.

Vs

The business minded breed of today. The talent hasn't changed, but the impression from the public has. Promoters get salty, lable fighters as cowards. Guys are too smart to just take any money offered. . They want a good deal. They know their worth. They demand adequate time to train, and time off for injuries and surgeries

Fans and promoters hate that fighters are smarter now, and they drag then in the media as a result.

And it's mainly the black fighters.

They don't want smart black athletes like Floyd and Spence

They want dumb ones like Tyson used to be.

 

[#1hiphopjunki3]

This isn't something that happens just in the NBA, basketball, or sports. It's just the way people are wired to be. Everyone compares experiences to past experiences because it's an easy way to quantify your feelings about things to others.

When new cleaning products, vehicles, food items, etc. are marketed some of the 1st and most common things they do in any of their ads is compare how their product is better than either their older model or their competitors.

 

[Bow to Royalty]

This isn't something that happens just in the NBA, basketball, or sports. It's just the way people are wired to be. Everyone compares experiences to past experiences because it's an easy way to quantify your feelings about things to others.

When new cleaning products, vehicles, food items, etc. are marketed some of the 1st and most common things they do in any of their ads is compare how their product is better than either their older model or their competitors.

I have to disagree here. You may hear a car/movie/whatever advertised as "our best ever" or something. But that's just marketing. When new model cars come out every year you don't see consumers comparing them with the 90's models. You're looking at marketing. That's different.

 

[5 Grand]

I wouldn't say its from having less talent. I would say it comes from the best fights not being made at the best times. Take Mayweather vs Manny Pac. It took 5-6 years for that fight to be made and when it was finally made both fighters were well past their prime. The quality of the fight showed that. Now they both made more money when they fought than what they would've made if they had fought when both were closer to their physical primes. I want them to get paid but I also want the best quality product for my money. Also because fights take so long to happen if they even happen the press and the fans aren't so sure about how good to great these fighters are because they feel they aren't or don't challenge themselves like fighters did in the past. They kind of have a point.

Back in the day to make real big money fighting you had to fight the best guy that everybody wanted to see said person fight. Now that ain't the case. You have some dudes fighting folks who barely in the top 20 rankings for said division but they star fighter is getting paid millions for that BS fight. So what incentive do they have to actually fight the best and toughest fights?

There are fighters who fight more than twice a year. Some star fighters would prefer to fight at least 3 times a year but with promoters and tv contracts it usually doesn't work out to well for them fighting 3 times year. Too many times they only fighting once a year.

@ the bolded. Boxers get paid per fight and endorsements on the side. There are three main boxing organizations/divisions, the WBC, the WBA and the IBF.

Generally speaking, if you are the champion of one division, say the WBC, they make you fight their #1 contender in 1 year. If you don't fight who they tell you to fight they will strip you of your belt and you will no longer be the champion. So a champion has two options,

a) to fight a complete bum first for the payday and the easy win, then fight the #1 contender, which is a fight he might lose.

For example, Mike Tyson got a $6 million check for fighting Buster Douglas, who was a 42-1 underdog, and then he was going to fight Evander Holyfield who was the #1 contender.


b) Fight the #1 contender within a year. Mike Tyson could have skipped the Buster Douglass fight and just fought Evander Holyfield, but he wanted the quick paycheck & the easy win, so he fought Buster Douglass.

Anyway, my point is that the champion only has to fight once per year. It's the guys that are ranked in the top 10 that fight several times in one year.