ALL EYES ON B’KLYN
Will big-time Nets buzz this season lead to ratings win for YES? Stay tuned
The Yankees Entertainment & Sports Network’s TV advertisements, heralding the coming of the Nets season, throw caution — and history — to the wind.
An authoritative voiceover proclaims the Nets are preparing “for their most anticipated season ever.” With the pairing of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving scheduled to hit the Brooklyn hardwood, and the possibility of adding a third superstar like James Harden, YES suits, whose primary tenant is the Yankees, have every reason to embrace the buzz surrounding Brooklyn. YES is even doing a series of Nets “Hot Stove” shows. Early results for YES’ Nets advertising sales are good and likely destined for higher ground as the season approaches.
Outside of the NBA’s national TV partners (TNT, ESPN) YES, because of New York State COVID-19 restrictions on fans attending games, will be the only place to see the Nets. All this stuff should result in the stars, on the court, and others, of a celestial variety, aligning. It could not have come at a better time for YES.
Like other media outlets, the coronavirus has trashed the bottom line. Now, the network is looking to play catchup. What better way than to have Durant/Irving — and maybe even Harden — lead YES to ratings glory. Indeed, it does sound like this most “anticipated” Nets season ever is destined for big things from a TV perspective.
Duck. Here comes the cold water.
Everything, of course, is predicated on winning and unpredictable issues that flip a team into the funk. Exhibit A: The last time the Nets were in high gaga mode, dripping in maximum anticipation and expectations, was in the runup to the 2013-14 season. On draft day, in what hoop-heads saw as a transformative deal, the Nets acquired Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce from Boston in a trade. Two marquee stars, albeit on the back-end of their careers, were coming to Brooklyn to win and shove the Knicks i mage deeper into the NBA’s toilet.
The ages of Garnett and Pierce, and the tread left on their sneakers, did not matter. Media Hoop Heads were blinded by then-owner Mikhail Prokhorov’s hype (remember his Nets billboard positioned near Madison
Square Garden?). The hype was relentless. This was the last much “anticipated” Nets season. The walk never matched the talk. Not even close. In 2013-2014 the Nets averaged 85,000 viewers per game on YES, down from the 92,000 viewers per game during the 2012-2013 season.
There were reasons for the drop in viewership. The stars didn’t exactly sparkle. Garnett, who played in 54 games, averaged 6.5 points per game and 6.6 rebounds. Pierce, who played in 75 games, averaged 13.5 points per game and 4.6 rebounds. That same season, Nets big man Brook Lopez broke a bone in his foot in December and only played 17 games. He was averaging 20 points and six rebounds when he went down.
The Nets trade that had the city buzzing turned out to be a colossal bust. The Nets finished 44-38 in 2013-14 season compared to 49-33, the season before.
During the COVID-shortened 2019-2020 season, the Nets on YES averaged 45,000 viewers per game, up 10% from the 41,000 average in 2018-2019.
For the Nets, that’s not a high mountain to climb — especially if you believe the hype.
QUESTIONING JAMAL?
Some of the very same Gasbags who once praised Jamal Adams for “speaking his mind” when he was with the Jets, took him to task for recently telling the “All Things Covered” podcast that he
“fought depression” when he was with Gang Green.
Chris Carlin, on his Tuesday ESPN-98.7 soiree, hammered Adams for basically not knowing the difference between “depression” and a case of the blues. Carlin wasn’t exactly sympathetic. Yet, to his credit and his usual quest for candor, Carlin revealed to listeners that he and some members of his family had “experienced” depression. He offered his definition of the severe mood disorder.
In essence, Carlin was questioning Adams intelligence and sincerity.
Fine. Yet, turning the clock back to November 2018 after the Jets lost 41-10 to the Bills, when Adams more than inferred, during his weekly spot on WFAN’s old CMB (Carlin, Maggie Gray, Bart Scott) show, that the Jets quit, it makes us wonder why Carlin, or any of his Partners In Yakk, didn’t challenge Adams on that take — or any of the other outrageous things he said on the air, but couldn’t prove?
The fact Adams was providing headlines for these Gabbers, and basically going unchallenged in the process, made him cool when he was a Jet. But now that he’s in Seattle, Gasbags finally claim to be hip to his me-me-manipulative style that eventually got him out of town.
Now Adams is a safe target. It’s all so depressing.
COHEN’S FREE PASS
The local baseball media, and Valley of the Stupid Gasbags, have proven amazingly adept at rolling over, and whispering sweet somethings, in Steve Cohen’s direction.
It’s amazing how they totally accepted the new Mets boss’ words about not owning the Mets “to make money” as if it were gospel — or even the truth. Studying Cohen’s history, it’s safe to say he’s not just looking to field a fine product, but turn a profit in the process.
Yet the media is buying this financial double talk because it puts no limits on their nearly daily laundry lists of players, they want Mr. Cohen to acquire.
Nonetheless, the most pathetic response to Cohen has come from Gasbags like Evan Roberts and Gregg Giannotti, who have begged Cohen to DM them on Twitter. Considering the fiscal perils of WFAN maybe the two yakkers want Cohen to loan them some money.