"I think the NFL is 10 years away from an implosion," Cuban said Sunday evening when his pregame conversation with reporters, which covered a broad range of topics, swayed toward football. "I'm just telling you, pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered. And they're getting hoggy. Just watch. Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered. When you try to take it too far, people turn the other way.
"I'm just telling you, when you've got a good thing and you get greedy, it always, always, always, always, always turns on you. That's rule number one of business."
"I'm just telling you, when you've got a good thing and you get greedy, it always, always, always, always, always turns on you. That's rule number one of business."
Initially, I took these comments as Cuban being Cuban, just stirring the pot, doing what he does best. He also said a few weeks ago that the NBA's D-League was a better option for players than the NCAA. It's hard to dispute Cuban's credentials on any monetary subjects. If that's the way you look at his latest comments, that is. But in order for Cuban's prediction to come true, though, wouldn't another professional sports league need to step up?
Could it be the NBA, where up to a third of the teams are somewhat-openly "tanking" away their seasons? Where it's become a common practice to "tank" for a better draft pick as a means of rebuilding? This is hardly the first Tankapalooza we've had in the NBA. Remember the Greg Oden/Kevin Durant suckfest of 2007, or the LeBron Sweepstakes of 2003, most (in)famously?
Have you ever heard about teams in the other professional leagues consider the strategy of losing games on purpose? Sure, the Cavaliers got better because of drafting LeBron, but only appeared in one NBA Finals over seven years. How did the Trail Blazers fare drafting Oden? And those are simply the teams that got the no. 1 overall pick in those years. What happens when you don't win the lottery? Tank again?
Currently, the Philadelphia 76ers have lost 25 games in a row, but they still don't have the worst record! Seriously, the Sixers are 15-56, but the Milwaukee Bucks are 13-58.
You could make a case the Sixers, Celtics, Lakers and Knicks are the four signature franchises in the NBA. I'm basing this off of history and longevity in the league, plus market size. Those four franchises are among just eight in the Association with roots to 1950 or prior. The combined record right now? 90-190. Exactly 100 games below .500. Realistically, it could be three years or more before any of them are relevant again.
Teams in the NBA position themselves for specific free agent classes instead of the draft, also often years in the future (see above video). And to be fair, it's worked out quite well for Miami. But the fact that players are teaming up with one another, rather than trying to defeat their rivals, is somewhat of a turnoff for me. LeBron may lead the league in jersey sales, but I'm willing to bet for every person who doesn't know any better adores him, there's a person who despises him. Add in star players like Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony or Deron Williams in recent years demanding trades to "bigger markets," not necessarily with winning as their motivation, I think it's hard for common sports fans to truly identify with the NBA. Next.
Could it be the MLB, where you don't really know who's playing by the rules? It's been over six years since the Mitchell Report was released, and over 10 years since the "random testing" which the findings were based off of, and we still had the Biogenesis scandal just last season. Steroid use, as well as other performance enhancers, continue to haunt baseball.
A true baseball fan will recognize that Mike Trout, Miguel Cabrera, Andrew McCutchen or some other player is currently the best there is in the game. But in terms of mainstream recognition, wouldn't you have to say the biggest name is still Alex Rodriguez? Who's suspended for all of 2014? Ryan Braun is another player involved with Biogenesis who missed the final 65 games of his season a year ago, less than two years off his 2011 NL MVP award.
Baseball's Hall of Fame voting process is worthy of its own entire column, but who made the biggest headlines this year? Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas, all outstanding players, were ultimately inducted, but I'm willing to bet you remember who wasn't inducted even more: Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro....you guessed it, the steroid gang. There's still no definitive answer how to handle this era of players in a historical context, forget the Hall of Fame. How do you view their statistical accomplishments? Did some of them, namely Bonds and Clemens, have good enough stats before they (allegedly) starting using PEDs that they should still be held in high regard? Does the McGwire-Sosa home run chase of 1998 bring back fond memories, or do you recoil and say, "They fooled me Jerry!"
The pace of baseball games, defined as "boring" by many, is definitely an issue, but how much can really be done to solve that problem? I'm all for a "pitch clock" of sorts, a la the play clock in the NFL or shot clock in the NBA, as well as limiting the number of mound visits/pitcher-catcher conferences....but how feasible are those steps in a game that really hasn't changed much since the 1800's?
World Series ratings have been a bummer for the better part of a decade now too. Since the Red Sox defeated the Cardinals in the 2004 World Series, only one single game has drawn more than 25 million viewers: Game 7 between the Cardinals and Rangers in 2011. It's been since 2002 (Game 7 Giants vs. Angels) that a game topped 30 million in viewership.
I personally love baseball, but until there's a little more speed to the game and a lot more certainty about steroid use, can't see it catching back up to football. Next.
Could it be the NHL, a league where a lockout has cancelled games on three separate occasions (including one whole season) in the last 19 years? The above video features Chris Chelios, Cam Neely and Wayne Gretzky with some scathing words for NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman.
And that video is from 1994, during the first lockout. You'd have to think Bettman would have learned his lesson after that debacle, no? The entire 2004-2005 season was cancelled due to a lockout, and most recently, nearly half of the 2012-2013 season was wiped out due to yet another.
Is it fair to pin all of the lockout woes on Bettman? Maybe not all of it, but what about his vision of "Sun Belt Hockey?" Since taking office on February 1, 1993, the Anaheim Ducks, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, *Atlanta Thrashers, Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jacks have joined the NHL via expansion. Via relocation, the Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, Phoenix Coyotes and *Winnipeg Jets have joined the league. *-same franchise. You'll see what I mean in a minute.
Mixed results, at best. The Avalanche, Stars, Hurricanes and Ducks have all won Stanley Cups (although the only reason I'm including the Avs in this only because they moved from Quebec City under Bettman, as Colorado is a "traditional hockey market"). But that hasn't stopped ownership and/or attendance woes in Dallas or Carolina.
Meanwhile, the Thrashers left Atlanta after 11 seasons for Winnipeg, where the original rendition of the Jets left for Phoenix in 1996 (under Bettman). Atlanta had already failed as a hockey town in the 1970's, prior to the Flames' move to Calgary. Naturally, that did not deter Bettman. But if you wanna talk about an unmitigated disaster, it's been Phoenix, where the league bought the Coyotes out of bankruptcy in 2009 and couldn't find a buyer until last summer. This ordeal included numerous failed relocation attempts by groups from more traditional hockey markets such as Hamilton, Ontario and Quebec City.
There's 30 teams in the NHL. The bottom five in attendance (by percentage) this season, you ask? All "Bettman projects," if you will: Florida, Carolina, Phoenix, Columbus and Dallas.
One of Mark Cuban's key points about the danger the NFL faces is "saturation." Safe to say the NHL should have heeded that advice once upon a time. Next.
Well, that's the competition for the NFL, at least in terms of the professional leagues. I'm not taking you seriously if you say "NASCAR." I love me the majors in golf, but come on. The NCAA is another argument for another time, with college hoops somewhat tied into the NBA, and college football tied in to some points I'm about to make. All three other professional leagues are dealing with their own issues. So doesn't that mean the NFL is immortal?
Not by a long shot.
And for as obnoxious as the mediocre set Thursday Night Football games is, for as asinine as the attempts place a team in London are, as lustful as the push for an 18-game regular season is...heck even the latest move to turn it into the "No Fun League," banning dunking the ball over goalposts after touchdowns, I don't think any of those issues would cause fans to turn their head the other way.
But I think the "C-word" will. And I'm not talking about the one you're thinking of either. Concussions, not to mention all serious injuries, are a tremendous threat to football as we know it. If you don't think this is affecting the game on a serious level yet, you're head's right in the sand. Sure, the effects won't be felt in the professional game for some time. I think Cuban is a little off on his 10 year projection. But the more stories you hear like Junior Seau's, like Tony Dorsett's, like Brett Favre's....you don't think youth football is on the decline? And from there, high school? You can see the trajectory from there. I'm not making a blanket statement here either. From 2010-2012, a 9.5% drop in Pop Warner participation occurred.
Obviously, there are concussion issues in sports other than football. But the risks aren't nearly as large in the other sports as it is on the gridiron, which might come across as generic, but let's face the truth for what it is.
Roger Goodell has some decisions to make. He's the most powerful man in all of sports, as the commissioner of the NFL. It's time to stop worrying about expanding your schedule to include Thursday nights, just to put even more money in your already disgustingly thick wallet. It's sure as hell time to stop considering adding games when these concussion issues must just scream "gee, too many players are getting hurt, why don't we expand our season by 13 percent?" London? I don't care how juvenile the word "stupid" is, that's what we're dealing with there.
Banning touchdown celebrations, changing the extra point rules, and other items that pertain to the competition of the game itself? Small potatoes compared to what's on his plate with concussions. To be honest, I have no idea how that can be solved. But I'm gonna go out on a limb and say with all that money Rodge is pocketing, he could probably take some steps for better awareness. A much more strict policy on playing after a concussion is a essential. It shouldn't matter if a player passes the "concussion protocol" test after suffering one just a few days earlier; if you suffer one, you sure as hell shouldn't be playing in a game the next week. And probably not the week after that either. How much time is enough to sit out? I'm not sure.
But time is of the essence for Goodell. Just because you're on top now doesn't mean you're entrenched there. Nothing lasts forever, and if you take the wrong steps to adapt, forever becomes a lot sooner. You're move, Rodge.
It's prime time for the MLS! Here we go GALAXY, here we go!
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