An Introduction: Winter Break Project

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to any and everyone, but especially the NBA faithful and Utah Jazz diehards, at the end of this 2023 calendar year.

By now, this extended break coincides with the NBA passing a third of its season. By now, teams are in contender conversations, having legitimate flaws, and beginning to tank for draft picks. By now, the trade window opens and creeps forward that can reshape the competitive landscape, while All-Star selections bring identity to the season and storylines as a whole.

Something that interests me is the idea of parity in the NBA. Parity, you say, what’s that? Consider: in the last 10 years, eight different franchises have won the Larry O’Brien championship trophy, capped with the Denver Nuggets winning their first in franchise history last season. While dynasties still exist in today’s NBA landscape and Super Teams will always form in the modern era, competitive balance in the professional basketball league should be a regular occurrence.

Technically, I am an 80s baby, but I only lived in the 80s for a month and a half. Therefore, my history with basketball begins in the 1990s, which I religiously followed from age seven onwards. Yet, half a century of ball played out on the hardwoods before I reached fanhood. 

Before I was, the basketball gods decreed that the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics would rule the sport, from basketball’s origin in the 1940s to the 2000s as well. Going back that far, in 1949, the Minneapolis Lakers would begin their run of winning five out of six championships in a row. Bill Russell then entered the picture and the Boston Celtics took 11 out of the next 13. He retires, and guess what, equality appeared on the hardwood. 

When fans think through their NBA History 101 timeline, they recount the dynasties and Super Teams: George Mikan and the Minneapolis Lakers, those Red Auerbach coached Celtic teams in the 80s, MJ and the 90s, Kobe and Shaq with the Lakers at the beginning of the 2000s, the Spurs in that decade and then some, and then LeBron James (as an entity himself) and the Golden State Warriors to bring us to the now. 

Did we miss anything?

Oh yeah. 

The 70s. 

NBA History 101: 1970 – 1989

To many, true competitive balance existed in the NBA during the 1970s, as that was the only decade without a repeat champion. Talent was split across two leagues – the ABA existed as well – and players were spread out across the country with many of the tantalizing talents using the red, white, and blue ball in the free-flowing offense of the ABA that used a three-point arc. As they waited to merge with the NBA, the NBA was sorting out its hierarchy. Sure, the Celtics and the Lakers were still common winners, appearing in finals and winning rings, but even the Baltimore/Washington Bullets were a success. If the Bullets who become Wizards can win, that’s something special! In fact, this decade even saw five teams (Milwaukee, New York, Golden State, Portland, and Seattle) get their first ring. 1975 MVP Bob Mcadoo described the ’70s best while reminiscing on the parity at the time, “I remember one year in Buffalo, we had the third-best record in the league with only 49 wins. The parity was there.”

Yet.

Because of the traditional style of basketball within the NBA and the diversity of stars not aligned within the NBA, this era could seem forgettable, and boring; was having competitive balance part of the problem, too? 

By the time the 1980s began, the Lakers and Celtics were easily the most recognizable brands in the league as well as their rotation for champions. The two franchises essentially traded the trophy every other year as Magic Johnson and Larry Bird became stars on and off the court. With the two teams having success in shining cities with marketable, personable stars, the NBA boomed as a business and sport. 

Check this out: In 1981, sixteen of the twenty-three teams lost money, and most franchises depended on an $800,000 check from CBS to stay afloat. In the 1982–83 season, there were just seven nationally televised games. By the end of the decade, the NBA and NBC signed a four-year $600 million deal. Cue the NBA on NBC theme music (From Hang Time to Prime Time). 

What was the difference? David Stern as NBA Commissioner was a big one. Stars across the league were another. Yes, the Celtics and Lakers controlled the narrative, but one name and iconic nicknames ruled the court, too. In Stern’s first draft as the head honcho, “The Dream” Hakeem Olajuwon, “His Airness” MJ, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton were selected who helped establish dominance with Dr. J or Isiah Thomas or Dominque, who were already bringing the NBA to fame with Bird and Magic in the spotlight. With Stern swinging big on TV deals, cracking down on drugs and alcohol, and empowering stars to be the show, the NBA was rocking and rolling. 

Overall, the 1980s were characterized by a competitive rivalry between the East Coast and West Coast. But the Magic and Bird showdowns, along with the emergence of other strong teams forming with the rise in talent, created an environment of exciting and closely contested basketball that helped shape the NBA into the global phenomenon it would truly become as MJ, perfectly in scene, entered the conversation. 

Check back in the next day or two for chapter two to recap how the Jazz would seem so close, yet never reach the peak thanks to Jordan’s Bulls in the 1990s, followed by other Superteams blocking any bigtime success in the 2000s, too.