Feed the Fans

I did not watch the NFL Pro Bowl this year. Nor did I watch the NBA All-Star game. Well, I did watch a few clips of the Celebrity Basketball Game just see if Kevin Hart said anything interesting, but that's beside the point. I had schoolwork and meetings and it just was not at all worth the time. From the minuscule opinion of a mortal fan such as myself, both events are over-hyped and under-delivered. As far as the Pro Bowl, the competition seems empty as no players want to get hurt for no legitimate reason other than a Hawaiian vacation. The All-Star game festivities, especially in pre-event promotion, way overshadow the actual event because most Americans would rather seen a spectacular star-studded dunk contest. However, that never ever happens these days due to whatever vague excuse used from luminaries such as King James, the Durantula, and Blake Griffin. Regardless of opinions on the peculiar rule change debuted at this years dunk contest, the event is just plain blah. Now that I have presented you with a wash of the general negativity of the matter, I want to seriously propose the greatest joint professional sport marketing event ever. All credit is due to Grantland staff writers for this fun and funny brainstorming session envisioning the best possible outcome of the decline of the all-star concept pro-level sporting event. I just want to help promote it.

Seriously, if the NFL and NBA created a joint Olympiad celebration, with all of their glitterati and glam, packed into 3 or 4 days, would you not watch it? Skills competitions on Wednesday and Thursday, rest on Friday, NBA on Saturday night, and NFL Sunday afternoon; it is perfect. Before we delve deeper, let us hash out the basic failing points of the current system:

• Nothing is at stake. (which is, admittedly, both good and bad)
• NBA superheros sometimes will not compete in fun competitions despite doing similar things on their own YouTube uploads and in commercials.
• The NFL has a thrown-together skills challenge but it lacks the gravity of a potentially thrilling, but rarely fulfilling, Slam Dunk Contest.
• Neither game is that competitive.

The first and last point can be both addressed quickly. If we want more competition, create a reward. The MLB All-Star game is rather well received and watched. The players actually care because the winning team, AL or NL, gets home field advantage for the World Series. I cannot think of something for the NFL right now, but there is room within the Draft and maybe the next-year's playoffs. The NBA could do the same as the MLB since they both have All-Star games midseason. If we do not want competitive play, to help prevent injuries, then make it more fun. Simply let players play whatever position they want!

Now to address the grand skills competition! Briefly these are a few possible events (some lifted from the Grantland feature): slam dunk contest, passing contest, shooting challenge, lineman basketball, celebrity football and basketball games, 3v3 basketball, 5v5 flag football, and the list goes on. If LeBron does not want to dunk, then let Megatron compete. Even better, how about a flag football team of Aaron Rodgers, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Marshawn Lynch, and Ndamukong Suh. Or watch Jared Allen get posted up by Vince Wilfork in the paint. I would love to see Steve Nash try his hand at football passing accuracy; he might not do well but it would be fun. Kevin Hart can participate in everything.

The viewer engagement would be miles beyond anything either organization has seen before. As, always fans will select the all-star teams on ESPN or through Twitter or Facebook. What if the NFL and NBA players selected their flag football teams themselves and then the fans voted for the starting match-ups within the bracket? The MVP's of every team-based event will be selected by viewer tweets. In fact, Twitter would have a field day with tweets penned solely to poke fun at large men playing a game that they probably should not be playing. The possibilities are virtually endless! Shaq could emcee every single event and serve as the Twitter curator-in-chief.

We can always hope. Maybe enough fans like myself will make similar pleas and the deep-pocketed men at the top of the sports entertainment pyramids will grant us plebians a beautiful wish.