Rantin’ and Ravin’: The NBA Draft is really dumb

By Chris Marler

The NBA Draft wrapped up Thursday night. And, if that’s news to you then you’re like millions of others who also didn’t know the draft ever even happened. 

Whether you consume the product or not, the NBA does do a lot of things right. That’s a fact. You can hate LeBron, the lack of defense, and the ESPN pregame shows that feel more like volume tests than actual analysis. That’s all fair.

Regardless, the league still does a lot of things right. The NBA draft, however, is not one of them. 

The league held its draft Wednesday and Thursday night on ESPN and ABC. You know, the prime-time slot most pro leagues aim for. That sweet 8–12 p.m. window on ABC, replacing whatever reimagined sitcom Tim Allen or the old Roseanne cast is starring in these days.

If the actual attempt was to put the draft in front of as few faces as possible, then job well done Adam Silver. If the goal was to remind the audience you’re missing why they don’t watch, mission accomplished.

Everything about the draft was done in a way to make it as difficult to follow as possible, starting with the hats. That’s right, the hats. In what should be the least important feature of the event, the NBA has somehow done the unthinkable and put it as a prime focus. 

Unlike the NFL, the NBA allows teams to trade players before they are ever under contract. So, if teams engage in a trade, the picks have to actually wear the hat of whatever team is trading them, not the team they’re being traded to. 

That’s fun. 

Where else can you get lifelong photos from the biggest night of your life…wearing the hat of a team you were technically with for 12 minutes on a random Wednesday in June? Even better: none of the trades are official until after the draft ends, ensuring maximum confusion for everyone involved.

The NBA doesn’t need my help in generating revenue or eyeballs on their content or product. However, as someone who falls into the category of becoming less and less interested in the product, maybe listen to the audience you’re starting to lose. 

There’s a reason why national networks were down this year in average viewers. There’s also a reason why this year’s finals were nearly half of what they were just eight to ten years ago, down from over 20 million views in Game 1 to just over 10.5 million. 

I don’t know how to make people interested in an 82 game schedule where more and more stars are resting on back-to-backs and sitting out until the playoffs. However, a good start would be letting the future stars of the league put on the correct hat.