The new-age dunk contest is depressing. Not because these guys can't dunk, but because we've reached the pinnacle of athleticism in regards to dunking already. When the dunk contest first blew up on the national stage, we were just breaking into the creative side of basketball. The Jordans and Dominiques were carrying the torch from the old school post up game to the new school finesse style of play.
We've seen just about all the human body is capable of in regards to dunking, which is evident in the last couple of dunk contests where the winner became victorious through the use of props. Superman capes, green shoes, birthday candles? I get the showmanship of it all, but it lacks the soul of the game.
Combine that with the fact that the biggest names in the NBA don't even want to compete, and you've got yourself a yawn-fest that lacks parody. How do you fix it? I'm not sure. Maybe you have height categories to put ballers on an even playing field. Maybe you list out mandatory props to see how creative each player is by comparison. Maybe you have rims at different heights and allot a different rating system for each. I don't have the exact answer, but there's one out there.
The fact remains that the street side of the game has reached a height that's hard to one-up. The players have changed. It's time for the game to catch up. Winning WWII was predicated on the idea of not letting technology out-progress war tactics. It's a ridiculous comparison, but the basic idea still applies.
No comments:
Post a Comment