Evan Roberts has sparked a spirited basketball debate after declaring that the college game is “horrible” in terms of skill and watchability, defending the NBA as it has taken plenty of heat this season when it comes to style of play and TV ratings.
BT and Sal opened Wednesday’s show debating that topic, with BT strongly supporting college over pro considering how much the NBA has changed in recent years, in BT’s opinion for the worst.
“To me, the NBA is as uninteresting today as it’s ever been in my lifetime,” BT said. “The regular season is completely irrelevant. Too many games...there’s no real urgency. Number two, the NBA is far too reliant on aging stars. Whether it’s LeBron or Steph, I’m just not jacked up to watch the Warriors or Lakers play at 8:00 on Saturday night. I think they have a problem where no one is grabbing the baton.
“The style of play, it’s like watching a Nerf game...when you’re 7 feet and shooting threes, it’s just so easy to shoot now, it’s taken some of the skill out of it. There’s no defense, there’s really no pride anymore in the NBA. I don’t tolerate it anymore. I don’t love the NBA.”
BT would rather watch kids grind through games with maximum effort, even if the efficiency isn’t there, over the professional level. Sal has a growing appreciation for the college game this season with St. John’s surging into the top 10, but the talent level in the NBA is undeniable, even if he doesn’t love the reliance on the 3-pointer.
“To me, it’s pretty common knowledge that the college game doesn’t have the talent that the NBA does,” Sal said. “There is no comparison in skillset from one to the other...I would rather watch the talent.”
BT would rather watch the effort, and if he was picking between a college game and an NBA game in which neither of his favorite teams are playing, he’s picking college.
“[Evan] was putting the NBA on a pedestal, and I think the NBA sucks right now,” BT said. “I think it’s awful.”