The NBA is dead and buried.
It's not even about basketball anymore. It's entirely about money and entertainment like the World Wrestling Federation and other such soap operas.
The game isn't even the main attraction these days. From the moment the fans step into the arena until the moment they leave, everything that goes on is arranged simply to get your money.
For about seven or eight seasons now, it seems like the game itself has become a sideshow, and all of the peripheral things (laser lights, fireworks, loud music, dancing girls, funny-looking mascots) are what brings in the crowds night after night.
To quote the great and illustrious Dennis Rodman, "Walk into any arena in the league and look what goes on outside the court. It seems the basketball is secondary. You get hit with a constant barrage of music and dance teams and stunts. These things detract from the game."
But it's not just that. The talent level of NBA players these days is just terrible. It seems like the majority of these college players who leave early just want to throw it down every time they get the ball. But when you tell them to shoot a 16-footer, they can't do it.
When did the NBA's downward spiral begin? I think it was in the early '90s when the league decided it was a good idea to pay enormous amounts of money to players before they play one minute.
When that happened, it opened up a floodgate which presented an even bigger problem: Players stopped caring about the game, especially these new guys.
Players don't play with any real emotion; they don't approach certain games as if they were a struggle between good and evil.
And in the playoffs, they don't come into each game thinking that it's a do or die situation, which each and every game in the playoffs is.
Now that players have stopped caring about the game, the all-flash-and-dazzle league of today is the end result.
Is Kobe Bryant the next Jordan? Nope. Dear Kobe isn't a team player, and he can't shoot well enough to carry a team through a rough stretch in a game. I still haven't forgotten that air-ball he threw up against the Jazz in last year's playoffs.
Is Kevin Garnett really worth $121 million? Nope. If he were, the Wolves wouldn't be the No. 7 team in the Western Conference. They'd be No. 5 at least.
Who are the league's next big stars? Antoine Walker, Tim Duncan and Keith Van Horn. They have the best all-around packages and offer some consistency and team attitude.
Rodman once made an passionate plea to the NBA's youthful players in his book Bad As I Wanna Be, saying, "I understand that players have a lot of money, and everybody wants to dress nicely and have a cool car, but, dammit, care about the game. Please care about the game."
I really wish they would, too.