Top 3 Reasons the NBA Should Contract

Professional basketball in the NBA is quickly falling on many fans' lists of things to do. Football in the NFL, baseball in MLB, and even golf on the PGA tour are all moving ahead of basketball in the NBA in terms of popularity. So why should there be so many teams in a failing league? Here are the top three reasons the NBA should contract teams from the league:

#3 - Poor attendance. Attendance around the league was at all time highs during the late 80's and early 90's. In that era, which seems like so long ago, even the expansion Charlotte Hornets were able to draw fans to the tune of leading the league for multiple years running. But these days, it seems to be the opposite. More games on television have translated into fewer fans in the seats. Half-full arenas have been commonplace during the current era. Even the major teams such as the Miami Heat, who are the defending champions, can't even draw during the week. So is it a problem or timing or games? Probably not. The league simple has too many teams. Contracting the teams with the lowest attendance may just inspire more fans to take this pitiful league seriously once again.

#2 - Decreases in competitive level of the league. Along with problems with attendance, the league seems to lack the competitive nature of the early days of basketball. Too many teams to count can't even break .500 year in and year out. Teams like the Atlanta Hawks can't draw a half-full arena on a regular basis and haven't made a legitimate run at the playoffs in too many years to count on one hand. More teams have the same story like the New York Knicks and the Portland Trailblazers. If the New York Knicks can't be competitive in the nation's largest sports market, then how can we expect the league to flourish? The answer may not be contracting the Knicks, but the Atlanta Hawks may be a great start.

#1 - Lack of talented team players. The most notable downfall of the NBA during the current era is its ever-decreasing pool of talented team players. The overall talent in the league is as high as ever with guys like LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Carmelo Anthony, but despite the wealth of individual talent, the team talent is extremely lacking. The league lacks the depth in role-players and guys willing to take a backseat for the sake of the team concept. Contracting several teams will force the talent into a smaller density group and force out the bad role-players that we are now seeing.