Why NBA shows sport should be more than mere action on court

LeBron James and the mighty LA Lakers were in Minnesota on the road for their NBA league match against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Centre, downtown on Monday night.

The match came three days after the “Wolves” were mauled 125-95 by Giannis Antentokounmpo-inspired neighbours Milwaukee Bucks in the same arena on Friday night.

Standing at six-foot-11 with a seven-foot-three wing span, the Greek forward, born of Nigerian immigrant parents, is already being touted as a probable NBA Most Valuable player with this season’s league just seven games out.

He is basically competing to dethrone Lakers’ fresh recruit “King James” from the headlines, maintaining the Bucks’ unbeaten run so far with the Lakers battling to keep their early season act together having lost four of their six games in the Western Conference so far to the Portland Trailblazers (119-128), Houston Rockets (115-124) and San Antonio Spurs (142-143 and 106-110).

But he is a king, of sorts, already, his Yoruba name Antentokounmpo, most appropriately, meaning “the king from foreign land.”

Sadly, we didn’t get to see the best of the 23-year-old Greek international as he ran into early foul trouble and, coupled with the incoherent Wolves’ feeble resistance, the giant spent just 23 minutes on the court as the game was already under wraps at half time.

Nonetheless, he still conjured up 15 points with 12 rebounds and six assists.

Watching the game at Target Centre on Friday night, I couldn’t help but appreciate the love fans have for the game with even Minnesota locals lining up to buy Antentokounmpo’s Bucks merchandise, never mind the fact that he was in the opposing team.

Since former NBA commissioner David Stern revolutionized the commercial aspects of the game, the NBA league has emerged as one of the most entertaining sports competitions with a lot happening outside the four quarters of the match.

Entertainment at each time-out, between the quarters, pre and post-game keeps fans busy with pubs, fast food outlets and merchandise shops around the arena attracting scores through the turnstiles hours before the match.

Courtside MCs Katie and Jon, both University of Minnesota graduates, also kept the fans on their feet with trivia, mini contests and forms of fan engagement electrifying the arena which was also treated to some comic relief by the team’s mascot, “Crunch”, who confesses love for “bacon-wrapped bacon” as his favourite pre-game meal.

Basically, fans get good value for their tickets, which sell from as low as $12 (Sh1,200) for normal seats to as much as $500 (Sh5,000) for the VIP seats. Average ticket prices stand at about $40 (Sh4,000).

It’s an awesome family outing with lots of entertainment for children also lined up.

On Friday night, the Wolves may have lost, but even toddlers had a great night out with Target Centre DJ Mardigan and the Timberwolves Dancers – full time employees who are also available for hire to perform at community events – in full cry.

That’s the vision Stern had for the league. To entertain.

Which also adds huge value for billionaires who have invested in the sport.

The Minnesota Timberwolves franchise is owned by Glen Taylor, an international businessman, state senator, entrepreneur and philanthropist whose fortunes are estimated at about $2.7 billion (Sh270 billion).

In the last financial year, the Wolves raked in revenues of about $204 million (Sh20.4 billion) with gate receipts accounting for $23 million (Sh2.3 billion)

A huge percentage of the team’s income was drawn from entertainment around the game with many sponsors having signed deals with the Wolves, including US Bank, Treasure Island Resort and Casino, Federated Insurance, Jack Links protein snacks and Mayo clinic, one of the most respected healthcare service providers.

On game night, besides the club generating good income, retailers also make a kill from arena sales.

Packaged as such, the NBA has grown into being the most entertaining league in the world with Stern’s 30 years at the helm having transformed the league from a somewhat nondescript competition into a multi-billion-dollar industry, a legacy his successor Adam Silver gleefully latched onto.

From tape delayed broadcasts, the NBA league is now one of television’s most sought after properties after Stern’s romance with sports cable which started in 1984 when the NBA signed a two-year, $20 million broadcast partnership with the TBS channel.

The impact of such progress trickles down to high school basketball with the clear player development lines meaning a steady and regular supply of great players who are drafted into the league from college.

At the moment, the most talked-about college star is Duke University giant freshman Zion Williamson who has been described as the “first true high school superstar of the social media area.”

Watching high school competitions in Kenya, we no doubt have the talent, but lack the structures and marketing finesse to transform the Kenya Basketball Federation league into a product like the NBA which would excite sponsors.

There is no hype around Kenyan leagues games, fixtures change on the eve of matches and players are hardly able to eke out a decent living out of the sport that has struggled to fill up venues despite low gate charges, with free entry to some games.

A lot needs to be done to repackage Kenyan basketball.

The potential cannot be overlooked.