NBA All Star Weekend Buzz and Flubs

The NBA's race against time

On this Mail Monday, we have a note from Reader Andrew:

Please write about this, Ethan. The players just ignoring Silver is hilarious.

Andrew links to a column from Tim Bontemps at ESPN, which we’ll get into. First, I want to establish that the All Star Game was roundly panned. It’s not just me, being a hater. This is the conventional wisdom now.

The main question of this post, which I seek to answer, is why NBA commissioner Adam Silver seems to suddenly care about the product’s shortcomings. I believe Adam’s outward mood has more to do with near term business than his own sense of fandom. The league is in the home stretch of securing its financial future and the current players can’t be bothered to put on a spirited show.