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NBA play-in video games are successful — here is why the league ought to maintain the format

NBA play-in games are a success — here's why the league should keep the format

LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers drives to the basket against the Golden State Warriors during the 2021 NBA Play-In Tournament on May 19, 2021 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California.

Adam Pantozzi | National Basketball Association | Getty Images

LeBron James made his feelings known. National Basketball Association team owner Mark Cuban did, too. Some like it, and others don’t.

But the NBA play-in games went from pandemic necessity to possible permanent feature.

The play-in games pair seeds 7-to-10 in each conference, with winners securing the final four playoff spots. The NBA installed the games last summer because the season was interrupted due to Covid-19.

“It added some excitement for our TV partners and for our fans to watch games that are important and meaningful,” Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver told CNBC when asked about the games. “And from an additional entertainment aspect, it’s an additional asset for our media partners.”

The latest on the viewership front is the NBA reached over 5 million viewers for the premium play-in: James’ Los Angeles Lakers against the Steph Curry-led Golden State Warriors. It’s not pro football viewership stats, but nothing in U.S. sports will ever match the NFL. And few media pundits will frown at 5 million viewers on a Wednesday night.

Now NBA commissioner Adam Silver will now navigate the politics of continuing playoff play-in games. He’ll have to deal with the basketball traditionalists, the egos in the ownership group and the players who will make their feedback known. But Silver’s job to convince his NBA constituencies shouldn’t be difficult, and here’s why.

Viewership is strong, and that’s what matters

Last year, only one play-in game occurred – the Memphis Grizzlies against the Portland Trail Blazers – as disparity guidelines were in place. The Blazers-Grizzlies averaged over 1 million viewers and peaked at 2.6 million on a Saturday afternoon in August. For two small-market teams, that’s a success for ESPN.

Turner Sports said the seventh-seed Boston Celtics win over the Washington Wizards averaged 2.5 million viewers. And the lower-seeded contest (Charlotte Hornets and Indiana Pacers) averaged 1.4 million viewers.

And James helped ESPN average 5.6 million viewers with his appearance. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Golden State Warriors 103-100 thanks to James’ game-winning shot. ESPN also averaged 2.2 million viewers for the first contest featuring Memphis Grizzlies rising star Ja Morant.

“The early returns are good,” said NBA executive Evan Wasch, one of the people James suggested should be fired for his part installing the play-in. Wasch is the executive vice president of basketball strategy and analytics. Part of his job is to help format the games, which were on the NBA’s radar before he arrived at the league.

With the potential of six new games added, that should only help the NBA when it comes back to the negotiating table with its national media partners. Early speculation is the NBA would seek just around $70 billion for new rights. The current agreement runs through 2024.

But if fans are watching, which so far they are, things could get interesting for Disney and the new Discovery-WarnerMedia.

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban shakes hands with Luka Doncic (77) after the 117-110 win over the San Antonio Spurs in an NBA basketball game Monday, Nov. 18, 2019, in Dallas.

Richard W. Rodriguez | AP

Team business will benefit

Like James, Cuban was adamant about his dislike for the games. The thing is, he commented when his Dallas Mavericks were on the verge of competing in the play-in. The Mavs escaped, though, and Cuban went back to discussing NFTs. But even he can’t deny the play-in games are suitable for his pocketbook.

The play-in games are basically playoff contests. For the seventh seed, it provides at least two elimination games at home. So, for instance, if the Mavs had finished seventh, they’d play the exact amount of guaranteed games at American Airlines Center as they would in a traditional playoff format. And if they win the play-in and advance far in the playoffs, that’s more gameday revenue, and that jersey patch increases in value, too. The play-in stats don’t count, but the money coming in does.

“The seventh seed sort of ends up in a net positive place from a team business perspective,” Wasch said. “That seed is getting an incremental benefit from being in this play-in by virtual of having more [playoff] home games.”

How can Cuban argue against that? Asked if his stance has changed, in an email, Cuban stayed quiet. But when asked his perspective, Sarver said, “I would have no problem supporting it.”

Ja Morant #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies rebounds the ball against the San Antonio Spurs during the 2021 NBA Play-In Tournament on May 19, 2021 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee.

Joe Murphy | National Basketball Association | Getty Images

The competition will be good

Take away the dull games featuring the Pacers and Wizards and the play-in games were fun to watch. But it’s the competition before the games that elevated the NBA’s fan engagement.

Over the final two weeks of the regular season, the play-in races were one of the most discussed topics in sports. Would the Lakers fall? Could Curry get in? Plus there was James’ dislike of the format.

“It certainly has not hurt the level of interest around the play-in to have some of our prominent players and owners speaking up about it, whether positive or negative,” Wasch said.

He added the race for the sixth-seed was intensified, as teams wanted to avoid the play-in. It’s here the NBA has created a race in the middle of the standings. When discussing the topic with CNBC, a prominent Western Conference team executive noted 24 teams were competing for positioning over the last few weeks of the season. Asked if he would support it permanently, the executive said yes. And Sarver noted it discourages teams from tanking to position for draft picks.

“What we learned is that our teams and players are responsive to the competitive dynamics that are presented in front of them,” Wasch said. “When you give teams the opportunity to earn greater rewards for finishing higher in the standings, and those rewards are outsized relative to what they’ve been traditionally, then you see a response.

“We saw it in the bubble last year with the teams in the Western Conference fighting to get into the play-in,” Wasch added. “And we’re seeing it fourfold this year because it’s just not eight and nine [seeds]. … If that were to continue, then this format is a success. So far, all the learnings have been positive.”

Now what happens?

The viewership for the Lakers-Warriors contest was solid, but that number could be tough to capture again. It did feature two of the top athletes in the world (Curry and James). The chances those two meet in that position again are slim.

Still, after Silver gets team owners in line, convincing the National Basketball Players Association is next. At that point, the NBA will reveal how much these play-in games mean to the league.

“I think they are going to have the play-in again,” said former NBPA executive Charles Grantham. “The thing is: what is it going to cost for them to get the players to agree? It’s no question that it will be a subject to negotiation for the next agreement.”

Now the director of the sports management program at Seton Hall, Grantham said he expects the NBPA to request that the play-in games’ revenue gets added to the NBA’s gross revenue, which they split with the players in the form of basketball-related income, according to their existing agreement.

And eliminating preseason games could be an option, too, as players could have questions about wear and tear on their bodies. But these days, teams have rest strategies so the obstacles shouldn’t prevent an agreement.

There’s still things to figure out, fairness being one of them, but the NBA found its new asset. The play-in games are fun and prove they work.

“If we found that fans felt it devalued the regular season, that would be something take a look at to see if we can squeak it in any way to adjust to that,” Wasch said. “But I’m optimistic we’ll find that it was actually a welcomed addition.”

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Health

Olympic organizers ought to mandate Covid vaccines for athletes and followers at Tokyo Video games

Olympic organizers should mandate Covid vaccines for athletes and fans at Tokyo Games

Arthur L. Caplan is the founding head of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU School of Medicine in New York City and Lee H. Igel is a clinical professor in the NYU Tisch Institute for Global Sport.

Pfizer and BioNTech are donating doses of their Covid-19 vaccine to athletes and delegations heading for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games this July.

With so many people around the world still waiting for a jab and the pandemic not letting up in more than a few regions, should Olympians be jumping the vaccine line? Yes — and they ought to get a running start with a tough, mandatory program as soon as possible.

The offer to donate the doses came up during a recent conversation that Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla was having with Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide. That led that Japanese government into discussing the opportunity in a meeting with the International Olympic Committee. The IOC then worked with Pfizer and BioNTech on a memorandum of understanding. It will have National Olympic Committees across the globe — 206 in all — coordinate with their local governments to administer vaccinations to athletes and delegates who are eligible for them.  Given the two-shot schedule, they need to start now.

Japan is planning to host a total of about 15,000 athletes at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Several thousand more people who will travel as part of the delegations will join them, even as numbers are limited due to pandemic regulations. Some of those heading to Tokyo will have been vaccinated already. Many, however, will have not yet had access to a vaccine. Others will have refused to take it because they are hesitant or don’t believe in its safety.

How many thousands of doses will end up being provided to the Olympic movement remains to be seen. Pfizer, BioNTech, and the IOC have said that those doses will be in addition to amounts already set to be supplied to different countries. But many people are wondering, if the pharmaceutical firms can produce extra vaccines for Olympic allotment, shouldn’t those doses go to people who are at greater risk for severe illness or death if they contract Covid?  

 That is a fair question, but it misses an important reality: the Games are on pace to take place as scheduled. This despite the fact that Tokyo and surrounding prefectures are under a government-mandated state of emergency because of high Covid infection rates.  But Japan is too far down the road to cancel the Games, which were already postponed once.

At a cost of more than $26 billion, the coming version of the Tokyo Olympics is the most expensive Summer Games ever. True, a majority of the Japanese public — about 60%, according to Yomiuri Shimbun polling, and up to 80%, according to polls cited by the Associated Press — opposes holding the Games. Doctors and nurses are protesting, and employees in at least one hospital posted signs in windows pleading for the Games to be canceled, because of overcapacity. But the money invested, not public health concerns, are now driving events. Unless a shock catastrophic event takes place, the Games will go on.

The Olympic festival, its athletes and delegates, and registered media and broadcast teams will be flowing into and around into Japan in late July. Even if Tokyo reduces the infection rate to a more manageable level in time for opening ceremonies, allowing thousands of unvaccinated people to enter and move about is irresponsible. It risks real strain on health care and public safety systems in the Olympic venues and throughout the city, in a nation that has one of the highest rates of vaccine hesitancy and lowest rates of vaccine confidence in the world.

The IOC will not be requiring athletes and delegates to have received a vaccine in order to participate in the Games. That is flat out wrong, given the danger of spreading new strains around the world when participants return home from the Games. Athletes, coaches, delegates, media, and suppliers, should be required to take the two-shot vaccine doses being offered. There is a need to keep as many people as safe as possible, and vaccines can help greatly in that regard.

Authentication by a physician that a person has been vaccinated a minimum of one month before the Games should be part of the protocol. So should frequent testing just prior to departure, on arrival, and throughout the Games, as should maintaining a tight bubble at all Olympic sites, venues and lodgings.

Olympic athletes and their support staff can be seen as “essential workers,” in that their participation in the Games can be seen by the world as a sign of good things happening in a bleak time. As IOC President Thomas Bach said, they can “lead by example … and send a powerful message that vaccination is not only about personal health, but also about solidarity and consideration of the wellbeing of others in their communities.”

Arguing about canceling the Games is over. They are going to happen. The organizers and athletes have about a month from now to insure their safety, the safety of Tokyo, and the safety of the world. Vaccination, testing, and quarantine are the key tools to aligning public health with the world’s desire for a bit of relief from a deadly plague. Let’s hope the IOC, local organizing committee and Japan get this right.

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Health

Garden Video games to Get pleasure from – The New York Instances

Lawn Games to Enjoy - The New York Times

Humans have played a version of a lawn game for thousands of years using devices as diverse as cow intestines, pig bladders, sharp sticks, and loose stones. There are exciting regional variations like the Swedish kubb, the German hammer blow, and the Italian ruzzola, a game played with a wheel made from aged pecorino.

But the games suggested here are less esoteric (no cheese wheels required) and none require their own space, just a reasonably flat piece of grass, dirt, or gravel. In most games, players take turns, which makes distancing a breeze. Other than the shuttlecocks, there is little reason for many hands to handle the same items that are needed to play. Lawn games are a low-key, inexpensive, and health-friendly way to add structure to an afternoon. Whether or not you break the open container laws while playing is entirely up to you.

The origins of croquet are disputed. Some historians trace it back to a French game called Paille Maille, while others trace it back to an Irish game played with broomstick mallets called Crookey. Croquet as we know it today rose across Britain in the 1860s and was soon exported to its various colonies.

Part of croquet’s popularity was due to its status as a rare sport that men and women could play together, making it a preferred way of flirting. (Some clergymen denounced it as immoral, a good indication that it was probably good fun.) “Women would wear special croquet dresses that are slightly shorter than regular dresses so they could see ankles and so on,” Ms. Boddy said. Nowadays, sets can be found for under $ 30, though equipment from Jacques of London, who has been making sets since the 19th century, costs a bit more.

Jane Austen knew how to have a good time – quilting, gardening, whist – and in 1808 she wrote to her sister that she and her nephew had recorded a game of lawn, battledore and shuttlecock, a forerunner of badminton. “He and I practiced together two mornings and improved a bit. We did it three times and six times once or twice. “

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Business

Tiger Woods returns to golf video video games for the primary time since 2013

Tiger Woods plays his shot from the second tee during the final round of the PNC Championship at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club Orlando on December 20, 2020 in Orlando, Florida.

Mike Ehrmann | Getty Images

Tiger Woods is back to video games.

New York-based software company Take-Two Interactive announced that it has partnered with Woods to capitalize on his name, image, and likeness. This allows the legendary PGA Tour figure to be featured in his golf game PGA Tour 2K. Woods will also join 2K as an executive director, the company said.

The terms of the pact were not made available.

“I look forward to getting back to the video game landscape and I’ve found the right partners in 2K and HB Studios to make it happen,” Woods said in a statement from the Golf Channel. “I am honored to take this opportunity and look forward to sharing my expertise and insights as we work together to shape the future of golf video games.”

Woods, 45, had previously signed a deal with rival game maker Electronic Arts (EA Sports) before parting ways with the company in 2013. According to a CNN article, the company sold over $ 700 million worth of golf games with Woods. The article also estimates that Woods made approximately $ 6 million a year during the partnership that began with EA Sports in 1998.

Forbes estimates that Woods made over $ 1 billion in referrals from companies like Nike and American Express. But whether Woods will return to play real golf is the more pressing question. Woods is still recovering from a February 23 car accident in Southern California, leaving the golfer with serious leg injuries.

Take-Two owns Rockstar Games and 2K Studio, the latter of which makes the National Basketball Association’s popular NBA 2K video game. The company will also return to playing National League football games for the first time since 2005 after signing a new licensing agreement with the league in March last year.

The company released its first PGA Tour game last August, developed by Canada-based HB Studios, which it announced to acquire Take-Two. Take-Two has a market cap of $ 19.9 billion. The company’s shares rose 2% Tuesday afternoon, trading at $ 173 per share.

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World News

Epic Video games buys Fall Guys developer Mediatonic

Epic Games buys Fall Guys developer Mediatonic

Gameplay from Mediatonics successful battle royale game Fall Guys.

Mediatonic

LONDON – Fortnite developer Epic Games has acquired Tonic Games Group, the British studio behind the hit video game Fall Guys.

Fall Guys was an instant hit when it launched last summer and attracted millions of players within a month of its release. The game features up to 60 players as gummy bears who compete over a series of candy-colored obstacle courses to win crowns, a game currency that players use to purchase cosmetics.

It was aided in large part by a wave of video game demand during the coronavirus pandemic. The deal with Epic comes amid a series of acquisitions in the gaming industry. Last year, Microsoft agreed to buy legendary gaming group Bethesda for $ 7.5 billion, while EA recently completed the acquisition of British racing game maker Codemasters, valued at $ 1.2 billion.

“It’s no secret that Epic is invested in building the Metaverse and Tonic Games shares that goal,” said Tim Sweeney, Epic founder and CEO, in a statement. “As Epic works to build this virtual future, we need great creative talent who know how to create high-performing games, content and experiences.”

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Fortnite and Fall Guys are similar in the sense that they both fall into the popular battle royale genre, made popular even by the massive success of Fortnite. Since its release in 2017, Fortnite has amassed more than 350 million players. This has caught the attention of notable investors like Sony, who invested $ 250 million in Epic over the past year. The company was last valued at $ 17.3 billion.

At the same time, Epic was embroiled in a tense legal battle with Apple over the iPhone manufacturer’s App Store guidelines. Epic released a version of Fortnite on the Apple App Store last year that included a method that allowed users to make in-app purchases without giving Apple the usual 30% cut. Apple then delisted the Fortnite app and Epic sued Apple later in the day.

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Business

They’re Flocking to America to Make a Fortune Enjoying Video Video games

They’re Flocking to America to Make a Fortune Playing Video Games

And salaries are rising in North America. The average for a player in the top five of a team has increased from $ 300,000 since 2018 to $ 460,000, Greeley said. The highest-paid players in the United States, Wolf said, could make up to $ 500,000 more than their elite counterparts in a country like South Korea.

Many of the 10 teams in the League Championship Series are backed by billionaires who also own traditional US sports teams. But sport hasn’t become a cash cow yet. To get into League of Legends, teams had to pay Riot $ 10 to $ 13 million.

Riot declined to say how much it made from League of Legends, and analysts don’t believe esports directly benefits it. But SuperData, a research firm, estimated the game itself grossed more than $ 1.8 billion in sales last year.

Just blocks from Riot’s headquarters in western Los Angeles, where games are usually played, is Sawtelle Boulevard, which is where esports stars frequent ramen restaurants and boba shops. Korean transplants often spend their weekends in Koreatown, where they can find foods that remind them of their homeland, said Genie Doi, an esports immigration lawyer.

Work-life balance in the US is another draw for players tired of 18-hour days of training and even developing wrist injuries, said Kang Jun-hyeok, a South Korea-born League of Legends player, the team was Liquid’s coach and general manager. Although South Korea and China have made strides in recent years, the culture is “to work hard and grind until you break down,” said 31-year-old Kang.

North American teams offer these perks to potential players when they do a tricky advertisement to get the best free agents before other teams do. Once a player decides to sign a contract, Ms. Doi helps the team apply for a visa, which she says was normally granted despite the unusual profession.

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Health

Play These Video games Digitally – The New York Instances

Play These Games Digitally - The New York Times

At best, good video calls are a mediocre substitute for real interaction. What if they are bad? You can be really bad. If your Thanksgiving Zoom family has been focused on melting toddlers and bored teenagers, maybe it is time to add a little friendly competition to the mix.

Online games allow near and far to engage with a common goal, which in turn creates a sense of togetherness – a feeling everyone wants these days.

Here is a selection of digital games and apps that gamers of all ages can enjoy.

“A boring video call is even more boring for kids,” said Max Tuchman, CEO and co-founder of Caribu, a video calling app specially designed for children. During the call, kids and adults can interact with on-screen games like tic-tac-toe, word search, memory matching cards, and math challenges. Caribu also has a library of books that open on your screen and adults and children can read together. The unlimited offer ($ 9.99 per month) is a family plan, meaning distant cousins ​​and grandparents can interact with a single membership.

If your family already has a wide variety of online games to choose from, then you should also download Bunch. This free app overlay video chat windows with existing games so you can talk about trash while playing Uno, Minecraft or Scrabble.

If some of your crew have game consoles and others use computers, consider a Jackbox Party Pack that allows you to play between eight players on a range of devices. Only one family member needs to purchase the party package, which ranges from $ 13.99 to $ 23.99. Packs have five games that you can play an unlimited number of times.

While playing trivia games with his family, Teddy Phillips found that most of them were severely lacking in representation. “All of the classic BET movies, none of them were ever in those categories,” he said. Phillips, 32, who lives in Seattle and works as a cybersecurity engineer, shot the game For The Culture, highlighting black culture and history. It is designed to be played in person but also works well via video chat.

Mr. Phillips also recently published For La Cultura, which shows the culture and history of Latinx. Because the culture is so diverse, Mr. Phillips sought help from Puerto Rican, Mexican, and Central American friends to make sure the game tells everyone’s story. Both For The Culture and For La Cultura are free with in-app purchases.

For families who are not particularly familiar with computers, a hosted Zoom game, where a game master leads and officiates, can be a good option.

Since March Michael Wade, a recent Richmond-based MBA graduate. Va. Developed and hosted Trivia Throwdown Online, a zoom-based trivia game that teams up families for a Family Feud vs Jeopardy-style match. “It’s based on the idea of ​​how we get people to connect and work together,” he said.

Mr Wade writes age-specific questions, which means grandma and your tween niece both have an equal chance of getting a pop culture question right. Prices for family, nonprofit, and corporate events vary, but the average event for up to 30 people costs around $ 300.

Matt Hendricks, a games expert who owns the Thirsty Dice game store and cafe in Philadelphia, has also taken his game hosting business online and charges around $ 270 (depending on group size). Recently, an art-based game called Duplicate has been particularly popular. The game is based on collaboration between small groups, which “makes people feel like they are together,” he said. This is the key to making everyone feel like a winner.