Jacob Riis Agrees

by Ryan

So I'm not the biggest basketball fan, but unlike Jon and Chris, I'm trying to get better. Rich is a big basketball fan, and I'm slowly trying to follow the NBA close enough to actually post about it.

The guys over at USRT seem to be one of the few local blogs that post about the NBA, and I'd love to get a better feel for the league and maybe start, you know... talking about it come next fall.

The concussion is preventing me from creating a proper segue, so let's just say that USRT came through with an interesting article from the Buffalo News.

First off, let's all agree this is a brilliant idea if you live around here. No matter what Jon may say, there is interest in the NBA in the area. People here watch the games, people here hate the Spurs, and people would come to see a game in person. I would certainly pay the price to see the Raptors in Buffalo, and I hope it works itself out.

But that's not what we're here to do. Let's take a look at what the good people at TSN.ca have to say about the idea.

Wait, not the article, that's just a summary of TBN's work. Instead, check out the "comments" at the bottom. Here, let's just sample a few:

can see pre-season games...but why regular season games??...do owners anymore care about the fans at all...liie how greedy can they get...if they start playing regualr season games in Buffalo then I am cancelling my season tickets...

No, no, no........

This is embarrassing. Playing in Buffalo makes NO sense from a business perspective. Americans aren't that eager to accept an unproven CANADIAN basketball team. They have 29 other teams. The Raps were division champs but aren't consistently competitive.

Wow, that sounds so familiar. You would think their entire franchise is at risk or something. I mean hey, it's not like the games would be a last ditch effort to make money in the region, right? This is just... preseason games, and maybe a regular season game or two. Hell, we can call it the "Raptors in Buffalo" series, with a shiny new logo for the event and everything!

I've decided that when they play here, I will write a book entitled "How the Other Half Lives", complete with flash photography!