In response to President Trump saying he wasn’t watching NBA games, Lebron James said, “I could care less.” James meant he couldn’t care less.
But Trump wasn’t alone in eschewing pro basketball. Millions of Americans did. That’s clear from the abysmal television ratings for the NBA playoffs.
James might not care about that, either. He still gets paid.
However, NBA commissioner Adam Silver “could care” about the TV ratings. In fact, he does. It’s part of what he’s paid to care about.
Accordingly, Silver says the NBA will revisit the “social justice” messaging the league and its players imposed on the (vanishing) viewing public this season. Silver stated:
I would say, in terms of the messages you see on the court and our jerseys, this was an extraordinary moment in time when we began these discussions with the players and what we all lived through this summer. My sense is there’ll be somewhat a return to normalcy, that those messages will largely be left to be delivered off the floor.
And I understand those people who are saying, “I’m on your side, but I want to watch a basketball game.”
That’s mighty big of Silver. As long as you’re on his side, he will tolerate, and maybe even accommodate you to a degree. Not as much as he will accommodate China, though.
I’m not on Silver’s side — not regarding BLM and not regarding China. So I doubt I’ll watch any NBA games next season. After 60 years of fandom, I think I’m done.
