Former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas laced into the Hornets a few days ago, but not for their play on the court, but for the hype surrounding the franchise.
For a league like the NBA that has so much talent and so much skill, for a game that is so beautiful, continuous narratives surrounding certain franchises and players have reared its ugly head.
Like other sports, media companies have brought in several of the league’s former players to analyze the game and offer their opinions.
Here’s the problem that lies though.
These opinions have been starting to turn NBA discourse into a hot take factory, which then leaves the fans – who used to widen their eyes at said takes – roll their eyes instead.
Former All Star point guard Gilbert Arenas has been at it for several years, and this time, the Charlotte Hornets are on his radar.
For whatever reason, Arenas blasted the Hornets after learning that point guard LaMelo Ball was the center of trade talks and that Charlotte was actively seeking what Ball could return.
"First of all, it's Charlotte. Do we care? Let's just be honest, what they doing?” Arenas questioned. “If you want to give away Lamelo because he's the only reason people are going there. Lamelo Ball! If you didn't have Lamelo Ball, when (Michael) Jordan left, the team should've left. When he sold his team the NBA should've forced you to move their a– to somewhere else or got rid of them. So the only reason we pay attention to the Charlotte Hornets is because of LaMelo Ball."
Let’s unpack these comments from Arenas.
"First of all, it's Charlotte. Do we care? Let's just be honest, what they doing?”
This is a concerning comment already, because NBA fans tune into what Arenas has to say.
Like it or not, Arenas is openly devaluing a franchise because of their past history.
And it’s true, the Hornets have not been a good franchise since they returned to Charlotte. But let’s not ignore the fact that this is a team that is on the rise.
Yes, we’ve heard it all. For the past 20 years, this has been a team on the rise.
But now, the seeds are planted. There’s a different vibe around this team.
General Jeff Peterson has done a fantastic job at rebuilding a team that was once in despair, and turning it into a hopeful playoff contender.
And there’s numbers to back it up.
Whenever Ball, Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel, Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate are on the floor, the Hornets have an average margin of victory of 28.5, which includes the 55 point demolition they handed out to the Utah Jazz on Saturday night.
So what is the point of devaluing a team like that?
“If you want to give away Lamelo because he's the only reason people are going there. Lamelo Ball!”
There is some truth to this, but it’s not the whole truth anymore.
While Ball has star value, and he is probably the most naturally gifted player on the team, he:
- Carries a lot of baggage in terms of his injury history.
- He is not the sole driving force anymore.
With the emergence of Kon Knueppel and Brandon Miller, Charlotte is able to lean on more players than just Ball.
Ball is electric, but unreliable. On Saturday, he became the fastest player ever to hit 800 career 3-pointers, but the problem is that it took him only 260 games, but in six seasons.
“If you didn't have Lamelo Ball, when Jordan left, the team should've left. When he sold his team the NBA should've forced you to move their a– to somewhere else or got rid of them.”
Once again, this is sheer devaluing of a team, that’s main purpose is to drive money for the league.
When casual fans hear someone speak like this, they don’t take the team seriously. They already made up their mind.
And now, you’ve put it into their heads, that Charlotte isn’t viable of having an NBA team.
The NBA media does this frequently. They openly push for relocation for teams like the New Orleans Pelicans or Memphis Grizzlies. But now it seems like Charlotte is starting to get brought into the discussion.
Thus far in the NBA season, Charlotte is ranked 15th in home attendance, where it has totaled 348,881 people in 19 home games. That’s an average of 18,362 for an arena that holds a smidge under 20,000 fans.
For those keeping track at home, that’s a higher number than what franchises like the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers have brought in this season.
The NBA has generated loads of revenue because of media deals and what not.
But there’s a common conception around the fans that the product has gotten stale, predictable, and less exciting.
You want to know what would turn that around? Keeping all teams on an even playing field.
Players in the NFL don’t seem to have a problem going to lesser named cities like Green Bay or Buffalo.
Why does just the NBA have to have a superiority complex when it comes to cities?
If we want to grow the game, we need to be a lot more careful about the things we say, and quit alienating the teams that generate the league revenue.