There's no getting around it, the NBA lockout sucks. For me, a fan whose primary love is basketball, dedicating myself to reading lengthy lawsuits and hoping to hear good news is a tragedy. However, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'll take a look at the silver lining of the lockout.
Without further ado, here are the ten things that everyone has to be thankful for because of the NBA lockout.
- Because I haven't been staying up late to watch the Rockets for the last three weeks, I've gotten to focus on getting all my readings done on time and throwing myself into my schoolwork. (Good one, Patrick!)
- Every die-hard NBA fan has gotten to see a host of their friends go from casual observers to "legal experts" on the matter after the players filed a pair of lawsuits in recent weeks. Just as everyone becomes an NBA draft expert as the draft approaches, this phenomenon has continued into the legal struggle. Just don't count on them to defend you if you get a DUI.
- Now that the union has disclaimed interest, we are treated to such laughable pages as this, the NBA Players' Association's website.
- If you think you're not smart, just look at both the players' and the owners' idea of public relations. You'll feel like a genius.
- We get to see exciting players like Andrei Kirilenko and J.R. Smith playing a full season in exotic locales! Oh wait, we don't (though I'm sure the Kirilenko injury video is a silver lining in itself for some hardened Jazz haters).
- For the first time, I know more than 4 hockey players' names!
- Many fans have always wanted to see that their favorite players are just normal people like all of us. Luckily for them, Delonte West's probation does not allow him to leave the country and sign elsewhere so he is living a normal life as a furniture stock room worker. But the fact that he landed the job there is not all we have to be thankful for, his actual application is the real gold. Take a gander at it, noticing how he described his arrest for weapons charges.
- Because Terrence Williams isn't making any money right now, he decided to take part in a video series on YouTube called "Poor Hungry Driven." Yep, seems perfectly reasonable.
- With their free time, certain NBA players are putting out rap albums. They may never top Deion Sanders' work, but they still provide a lot of entertainment value.
- Instead of watching NBA games, we all have no excuse not to be writing Bud Selig letters protesting his extortion of Jim Crane. Send them to his office, the information is right here.
Don't you see, things aren't as bad as they seem! In fact, who really needs the NBA?