Sports

Yeah, basketball culture was huge, especially around 1994.

I'm not sure if it has something to do with hip hop and rap being so popular (I mean, it's not like people started playing the sport when MC Hammer had a couple hits :D ), but that image may have converted new people to it as well.

P.S. Michael Jordan was more known to the public as a household name during the '90s (he even did a few of those Wheaties commercials!), but he actually has his roots in the '80s as more of a cool, young player. I can vaguely remember people talking about him at the time, so by the time he got massively popular, I already sorta knew who he was.

I'm not sure if it has something to do with hip hop and rap being so popular (I mean, it's not like people started playing the sport when MC Hammer had a couple hits :D ), but that image may have converted new people to it as well.


I think some of the baby boomers who are/were basketball fans hate rap so I guess they don;t like hip-hop being associated with basketball as much as it is. Yeah but when MC hammer was around you had players like Isiah Thomas, Michael Jordan, and Karl Malone, and Clyde Drexler(circa 1990) who really didn't grow up listening to hip-hop. Most of today's NBA players (Allen Iverson, Jermaine O' Neal, and Carmelo Anthony) grew up on artists like Jay-Z and Puff Daddy. I didn't know Hip-Hop really didn't become popular full circle before Puff Daddy crossed over into the Top 40 back in 1997.

Another issue is the Pistons-Pacers brawl back in late 2004. I have seen people pick on the NBA for players wearing alot of Tatoo's. I mean who cares how many tatoos a player is wearing. Thats being nit-picky in my opinion.  I have heard people say teams play no defense. In my opinon they never played Defense in the 80's either. Look at the Lakers showtime era in the 80's. If you want defense look at the lowest rated NBA finals ever: Nets-Spurs back in 2003. There was plenty of great defense there but than again nobody watched that Finals. To catch myself yes I know the Pistons "bad boy" teams of the late 80's played defense but they also had players who could go to the basket and penetrate(Vinnie Johnson, Isiah, Mark Aggiure, and Joe Dumars.) In my opinion people just like to nit-pick at the NBA for some reason. I could understand 5 years ago but now no. 5 years ago there was no scoring and the games were real boring to watch in my opinion.

The rivalries in the 90s were much better.  Bulls/Knicks, Pacers/Knicks, Heat/Knicks, Bulls/Pacers.  Today, the rivalries are gone.

The rivalries in the 90s were much better.  Bulls/Knicks, Pacers/Knicks, Heat/Knicks, Bulls/Pacers.  Today, the rivalries are gone.
There last great rivalary in the 00's was Kings/Lakers. That 7 game playoff Series(Western Conference Finals) in in the 2001-2002 season that the kings and Lakers was great.

There last great rivalary in the 00's was Kings/Lakers. That 7 game playoff Series(Western Conference Finals) in in the 2001-2002 season that the kings and Lakers was great.



Kings got screwed in '02.

Kings got screwed in '02.
From what I heard in Game 6(i didn;t see the game) but the refs from what I hear just gave the game to the Lakers basically. Game 7 of that series the Kings beat themselves with bad free throw shooting.

I think the level of playing was much better. It was about the game and less about ego and thuggery.

From what I heard in Game 6(i didn;t see the game) but the refs from what I hear just gave the game to the Lakers basically. Game 7 of that series the Kings beat themselves with bad free throw shooting.



I watched the game.  Kobe elbowed Bibby in the face.  Bibby is on the floor bleeding and Bibby got the foul.  Had they called it on Kobe, Bibby would have won the game on free throws and the Kings would have won the series in 6 and faced the Nets in the Finals, which I believe the Kings would have won.

Kings got screwed in '02.


AMEN!  Doug Christie should've been taken out in the last couple of minutes of play....

Im a huge laker fan. I remember the days of Bryant, O'Neal, Van Exel, Ceballos, Blount, etc. ah good times

yeah i love shaq he got skills i likes me some space jam

I asked the same question here awhile ago...here in Australia they don't even telecast games on free to air anymore (there still is a national league, but that has lost alot of popularity), basketball's time in the sun was probably 1965 (the Wilt Chamberlain era) to about 1996. Since it became all about personalities and sponsors, it has gone downhill.

Im a huge laker fan. I remember the days of Bryant, O'Neal, Van Exel, Ceballos, Blount, etc. ah good times


I remember the days when Shaq was at the Orlando Magic, he was my favourite player, lol...