jayboogieman

The Panthers have never had a shutdown corner. Gamble is still the best corner this team has ever had and he was far from being a shutdown corner.

Ratings are down across the board and it's been a trend for a few years now. Even the NFL has seen a drop in ratings. People just have too many choices for entertainment these days. This is a big reason you see companies and leagues pushing into India and China. The US market peaked, so they are looking into the next biggest markets. Those markets also happen to have the potential to be bigger than the US market thanks to the population difference. The NBA is also a niche product these days. The NBA's heyday was when MJ was in his prime. It's been downhill since. Bally won't share, just like all the other regional sports channels won't. Being the only place to see the Hornets or Hurricanes is a huge selling point. The networks and leagues are trying to force everyone to pay to watch. I can't remember the last time I watched a Hornets game or even a collage game that was part of the old Jefferson Pilot Sports Network on different local stations. Everything now is TV rights for a whole league locked into deals with ABC/ESPN, CBS, Fox, NBC, or Turner Sports. And they are taking it further with individual channels now like the ACC Network that launched last year.

I'll never condone piracy, but I agree about the forced package or channel bundling. Sadly, the cable industry lobbyists have too much sway, so the FCC can't force the providers to offer a la cart channel choices. And that is something I've read has been brought up a time or two in congress, but it never gets any traction. The NBA is hedging its bets with their league pass streaming offerings, but those games can be subject to blackout rules.

Johnson might not have had a choice if the other owners all wanted the cable money. All of the NBA teams are broadcast on regional sports networks. I'm sure Johnson didn't mind taking the money either.

Steve Martin helped get the Hornets on a lot of systems(cable, DTV, Dish, ETC) before he retired. I live east of 95 and have DirecTV too. Bally Southeast is part of the sports channel package or whatever DTV calls it these days. I see a Hornets cap or shirt here an there, but it is rare.

The Hornets are on Bally Southeast or whatever it is called as well.

Cliff and now JB were supposed to build better cultures. Didn't workout so well with Cliff. Results are looking iffy with JB as well.

Golden State did not start attracting free agents until the Steph and the other drafted guys started winning titles. Embiid and Giannis haven't attracted other superstars yet either. The Lakers won the title last season and are favorites to repeat this year. I'd say it is working well for them. The Nets are the team to beat in the east, so it's working well for them as well. Both are in the biggest markets in the country. That is a big reason those superstars went there. The Lakers also have their storied history to attract guys. If the Hornets are going to have superstars, they better hope they can pull off a repeat of what Golden State did. Guys aren't going to come here just because Jordan owns the team or that LaMelo is here.

You guys are still watching? I had to turn it off since it was not enjoyable at all.

I missed the preshow. No wonder the Hornets are losing. Chuck picked them to win.

One of the worst first halves this season.

Both teams are shooting badly now, but the Hornets are shooting under 30%. That's Bobcats bad.

That buzzer beater just sealed this one unless a miracle happens.

Cody can give them 20 or about that easily enough. He's done it every month or so since he was drafted. He's due. That said, yeah, he's not consistent and never has been. I do agree with you that they should play the rookie centers. They should have been doing that all season.

I need to mute this I think. Hearing the announcer having breathing issues is not something I can get into.

Cody is doing ok. He's scoring more than most.

Yeah, it is.

One if the announcers sounds like they are having trouble breathing.

This got ugly quick. Hopefully they make a game of this and don't get embarrassed on national TV.

I was hoping to see something about all the possible DC fixer upper and cooking shows. Shame.

Hayward wasn't doing a lot before the injury. Early in the season he was great, after the break, not so much. I've said all season that this is Monk's last season here and I stick by that. I think he is gone during the offseason. Disagree. Several of the guys can get to the cup at will. They just prefer to shoot 3s because that is the current NBA game. And that sucks by the way. I prefer the cuts, post moves, and all that jazz. Let the 3 be what it was before and just another tool in the shed instead of the only tool. Melo is a rookie recovering from injury. That wrist is not totally healed up by the way. I also think he bought into his hype and played more trying to prove he should be ROY instead of winning team basketball.

I might would give Graham that sort of contract, but I wouldn't Monk. Unless Monk is on fire, he just doesn't do enough. Let some other team overpay him. Riller might be able to replace Monk and he is on a cheap rookie deal. I don't know if not having Hayward hurt that much. Miles stepped it up in a huge way and McDaniels is a decent bench guy. JB still some learning to do as a coach. As you said, living and dying by the 3 is not a winning way to do things. More so when the team is streaky like the Hornets are. An above average center would help a lot.

Another fourth quarter collapse.

Another bad start to the fourth quarter.

After I typed that previous comment they settled nicely.