Originally Posted by GSH
Post-season revenues are extremely important to the Spurs organization. Those revenues help pay for quality players. As much as I would like to see a sweep, it would be a lot better for the Spurs if it went 6 or even 7.
You should face facts...San Antonio is a small media market. And LeBron is a media darling. The kid who comes straight out of high school, and makes the NBA finals as soon as they get some decent players around him. If it helps the ratings, it indirectly helps the Spurs. Don't worry, the score isn't decided by SI.com. But if they can conjure up some suspense, let them.
The one other thing a lot of Spurs fans should do is forget the idea that the rest of the world is going to love the Spurs as much as the people in San Antonio (or Argentina). The won't. And they aren't going to appreciate the "nice guys do finish first" stories too much either. However undeserved it may be, the "bad boys" image that evolved this year could be good for a creating few more intense rivalries. Hopefully, ratings will come with those.
If the league is really the conspiracy-laden cesspool that many claim, then they made a serious mistake over the past several years by not countering the notion that the Spurs are boring. If there is a ratings-killer, that is definitely it. But what would they counter it with? The fans who are educated enough to appreciate textbook basketball are going to be watching anyway. The others want to see someone dunk the basketball like a team mascot coming off a trampoline. They want to see no-look, behind-the-back passes that actually go through the defenders shorts and then lead to spectacular finishes.
In a very real sense, LeBron will draw additional fans to the Finals the same way John Daly drew new fans to golf. But for that to happen, they have to be convinced that they are going to get to see a show. Those golf fans didn't care if Daly won the tournament. They lined up to watch him hit cannon-shots with his driver, and to scream, "You da man!" Hopefully, LeBron will get some new posters, and the Spurs will get another trophy. And the Spurs organization will get more post-season revenues.
See? We can just all get along. I love this game!