NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal shared his thoughts on the current decline in NBA viewership. O’Neal believes that the modern playstyle, which heavily focuses on three-point shooting, is to blame for the dwindling interest in the league.
He pointed out that many teams are running the same plays, primarily centered around the top of the key dribble handoff and three-point attempts.
“Everybody’s running the same plays. At the damn top of the key dribble handoff. I was talking to a coach yesterday and he said, ‘They want to shoot 50 threes.’ Because they were trying to contemplate if I could play in this era. They said, ‘Shaq if you would just shoot 50 threes,’ and I’m like, ‘Well how much you wanna make?’ We wanna make 10 or 15 of them.” O’Neal added, “I think viewership will continue to go down unless we switch things up.”
“I think viewership will continue to go down unless we switch things back up.”
– Shaq on NBA teams running the same plays and shooting threes.
via @bigpodwithshaq | https://t.co/xBNws0JBcf pic.twitter.com/5gmRqA6oGC
— Playmaker (@playmaker) November 7, 2024
Shaq believes that the increased emphasis on three-point shooting has made the game less diverse and less entertaining for fans. The league average for three-point attempts has reached an all-time high, with teams like the Celtics, Warriors, Suns, and Cavaliers relying heavily on the three-pointer.
As the NBA continues to navigate this issue, it will be interesting to see if any changes are made to address the concerns raised by O’Neal and other fans. For now, his theory remains a hot topic of discussion in the basketball community.
