Charles Barkley’s advice to Shaq about Orlando.

[Kblaze8855]

After an infamous poll many of you may not remember hearing about….

The July 16, 1996 issue of the Sentinel ran a poll on the front page that read, “Is Shaquille O’Neal Worth $115 million over 7 seasons?” According to Jeff Pearlman’s book Three Ring Circus, at the end of polling, 91.3% of readers voted “no.” That was basically the last straw in Shaq’s decision to leave the Magic.

Charles Barkley was a member of the 1996 US Olympic Team alongside O’Neal, which just happened to be holding practices in Orlando. When he got wind of the poll, Barkley didn’t mince words when telling Shaq what the future four-time champion needed to do, according to Pearlman:

“Are you f****** kidding me? You bring glory to this redneck, one-horse town, and this is what they think of you? Get out as soon as you can. F*** these people.”

Charles Barkley’s advice to Shaquille O’Neal in 1996
.

[BigShotBob]

They definitely planned on paying Penny that kind of money when the time came, just not Shaq. Though they wanted to at least get him $90-100 million but the Lakers were able to offer him more after getting rid of the entire bench and the rest is history really.

[FultzNationRISE]

I mean it is what it is.

Sports is full of fans who resent player salaries, but cant stop consuming the product.

In fact, that pretty much sums up all economics, period.

Just ask rrr3.

[Kblaze8855]

I mean it is what it is.

Sports is full of fans who resent player salaries, but cant stop consuming the product.

In fact, that pretty much sums up all economics, period.

Just ask rrr3.

Ever try to explain to someone why athletes make so much money?

People can’t get their head around built in subscriber fees, Internet impressions, advertising, international rights, corporate naming rights, apparel deals and on and on it goes.

It’s like they think someone sat down and just assigned them millions after deciding their contribution to society is worth that.

Theres a reason school teachers don’t make that money. There are too many of them and nobody wants to see them teach….

And some people genuinely don’t get it. I don’t know where they think the money should go. It goes to the players or the even richer owners. We as a society supply the money….then bitch that they have it.

Just weird shit.

[bladefd]

Chuck always spoke his mind, and he ended up being right here. Shaq wouldn't have won anything in Orlando.

Magic was not getting past the Bulls until 98 minimum. After that, who the hell knows. Sure T-Mac was great, but he didn't arrive until couple of years later in 2000. He was hardly clutch or as good defensively as Kobe. Magic had a crappy front-office that could also never be relied upon, even in the weak East at the time. Doc Rivers was the coach back then - I never exactly was sold on him as a coach like say Pat Riley or Phil Jackson. Chances are Shaq would have been rotting there.

[j3lademaster]

Ever try to explain to someone why athletes make so much money?

People can’t get their head around built in subscriber fees, Internet impressions, advertising, international rights, corporate naming rights, apparel deals and on and on it goes.

It’s like they think someone sat down and just assigned them millions after deciding their contribution to society is worth that.

Theres a reason school teachers don’t make that money. There are too many of them and nobody wants to see them teach….

And some people genuinely don’t get it. I don’t know where they think the money should go. It goes to the players or the even richer owners. We as a society supply the money….then bitch that they have it.

Just weird shit.

the NBA’s revenue is already there. It’s just a matter of whether that money goes to the owners or the players. Superstars like Lebron are actually very underpaid.

[bladefd]

Ever try to explain to someone why athletes make so much money?

People can’t get their head around built in subscriber fees, Internet impressions, advertising, international rights, corporate naming rights, apparel deals and on and on it goes.

It’s like they think someone sat down and just assigned them millions after deciding their contribution to society is worth that.

Theres a reason school teachers don’t make that money. There are too many of them and nobody wants to see them teach….

And some people genuinely don’t get it. I don’t know where they think the money should go. It goes to the players or the even richer owners. We as a society supply the money….then bitch that they have it.

Just weird shit.

How about cheaper tickets? Or cheaper NBA league pass? I can't afford to spend $100 on a basketball game ticket and be so far back that I can't even see the court. I also have to resort to streaming games because I can't afford to shell out $200 + tax per season for league pass. How about bringing down the cost of NBA league pass to $100/annually or less?

Why are we limited to "do you want the money to go to players or owners?" How about us fans? Are we not the reason why this revenue exists in the first place? Are we just chopped liver?

[FultzNationRISE]

How about cheaper tickets? Or cheaper NBA league pass? I can't afford to spend $100 on a basketball game ticket and be so far back that I can't even see the court. I also have to resort to streaming games because I can't afford to shell out $200 + tax per season. How about bringing down the cost of NBA league pass to $100/annually or less?

Why are we limited to "do you want the money to go to players or owners?" How about us fans? Are we not the reason why this revenue exists in the first place? Are we just chopped liver?

[Kblaze8855]

.Why are we limited to "do you want the money to go to players or owners?"

Because we live in the real world and not one of fairy tales?

There is no price point for league pass that prevents the players being insanely rich.

Just a matter of the specific number put in the “Nobody needs ____” argument made by someone who doesn’t understand the 800 ways they are the cause of the “problem”.

[Shogon]

How about cheaper tickets? Or cheaper NBA league pass? I can't afford to spend $100 on a basketball game ticket and be so far back that I can't even see the court. I also have to resort to streaming games because I can't afford to shell out $200 + tax per season for league pass. How about bringing down the cost of NBA league pass to $100/annually or less?

Why are we limited to "do you want the money to go to players or owners?" How about us fans? Are we not the reason why this revenue exists in the first place? Are we just chopped liver?

Do you not understand the basic concept of business or what is it, exactly?

If the NBA could make $50,000 per seat every single game and the games all were consistently selling out or close to it, should they charge $30 a seat so you can feel good? Obviously I am using extreme numbers here, but the point remains.

You want business to take in less income out of... charity?

If they charge less for the seats, the owners make less money, the league makes less money, the players make less money. At the end of the day they're providing their services for the maximum price that people are willing to pay.


That is point blank human nature period. I do agree that on an individual level it absolutely can get to a point where... when is enough enough? But when we're talking about large groups of people like the league + players, think maybe thousands of people total... uh... yeah... they're going to try to make as much money as they can. Again, it's just human nature.

It's like you don't understand this extremely basic concept of OBJECTIVE reality.

The seats are going to be as much as supply and demand allows them to be.

[bladefd]

Because we live in the real world and not one of fairy tales?

There is no price point for league pass that prevents the players being insanely rich.

Just a matter of the specific number put in the “Nobody needs ____” argument made by someone who doesn’t understand the 800 ways they are the cause of the “problem”.

Absolutely. I am not saying they or owners should not be insanely rich. All I'm saying is that a piece of the revenue should be pumped back into keeping league pass and tickets at least somewhat reasonably affordable. Otherwise it's a runaway train. Greed is a real thing. And it eats people from within. The more they make, the more they want.

In the 80s and 90s, tickets were possible for anyone. Cable TV was affordable. I understand the game grew and demand went up. I expect costs to be raised but when I see how much revenue the league is getting, I ask myself why the costs keep rising of say nba league pass. We are already at $200 per season. Cable tv is getting outrageously expensive as tnt/espn/abc all want a bigger pie to pay for the ever increasing tv deals that put more money into the pockets of players/owners (tv deals which ultimately drive up the cost for everyone subscribing).

Will it ever stop increasing? I think we both know it's unlikely until it gets to the point that it begins to drop from cord-cutters and people just unable to afford, period. The average person's income has not been keeping up with rising costs, let alone with inflation over last few decades. It's runaway capitalism with those already garnering the biggest incomes. And no end in sight.


As for shogun's post.. At what point do you say enough? This applies not just to nba but society as a whole. Jeff bezos will be just as happy with 9 mansions instead of 14 mansions. Mark Cuban will be just fine owning 5 mansions and 8 cars than 8 mansions and 13 cars. LeBron will just fine owning 3 mansions and 5 Ferraris. Nobody is talking about charity. Why is it a problem to be opposed to having extreme run-away crony capitalism? I don't want socialism but capitalism within reason. Just because I don't support crony capitalism doesn't mean I am asking for charity or socialism.

[iamgine]

Absolutely. I am not saying they or owners should not be insanely rich. All I'm saying is that a piece of the revenue should be pumped back into keeping league pass and tickets at least somewhat reasonably affordable.

For basketball? No.

Maybe for more important things like public transport.

Also, $200 for full season of HD NBA games are expensive? That's a lot less than the price of a cup of coffee per day. It can be argued as much much too cheap.

[warriorfan]

How about cheaper tickets? Or cheaper NBA league pass? I can't afford to spend $100 on a basketball game ticket and be so far back that I can't even see the court. I also have to resort to streaming games because I can't afford to shell out $200 + tax per season for league pass. How about bringing down the cost of NBA league pass to $100/annually or less?

Why are we limited to "do you want the money to go to players or owners?" How about us fans? Are we not the reason why this revenue exists in the first place? Are we just chopped liver?

At times it’s hard to believe this isn’t some sort of satire troll account.

[Phoenix]

Chuck always spoke his mind, and he ended up being right here. Shaq wouldn't have won anything in Orlando.

Magic was not getting past the Bulls until 98 minimum. After that, who the hell knows. Sure T-Mac was great, but he didn't arrive until couple of years later in 2000. He was hardly clutch or as good defensively as Kobe. Magic had a crappy front-office that could also never be relied upon, even in the weak East at the time. Doc Rivers was the coach back then - I never exactly was sold on him as a coach like say Pat Riley or Phil Jackson. Chances are Shaq would have been rotting there.

At one point it was thought that Duncan, Grant and Tmac were all going to Orlando in 2000. That would have only been possible with Shaq leaving and Penny having moved on. Shaq staying would have completely changed the next half decade of personnel moves, as well as completely changed the course of history for the Lakers in that time frame, which rewrites how the early 2000's unfold. The Spurs, Blazers and Kings may have all won a title in that period instead of the Lakers.

[Horatio33]

I live in England and for nearly $100 dollars a month I can watch up to 30 soccer matches a month. For league pass at $200 a year I can watch every nba game live or as most games are in the middle of the night can watch them the next day. Its pretty good value for money.