Basketball

12/20/2024 |  Charles Barkley, JJ Redick, Magic Johnson Weigh In on NBA Ratings Decline (Front Office Sports) When commissioner Adam Silver acknowledged the NBA’s ratings dip on Tuesday ahead of the NBA Cup final, he opened the door for others’ opinions on it. 
Silver stopped short of blaming the game’s heavy three-point style and instead pointed to the wider decline of cable nationwide as the reason for ratings being down 19% year over year. 

12/19/2024 |  Here Are the First Six Release Dates for the Adidas Harden Vol. 9 (Footwear News) James Harden and Adidas are moving quickly on with Harden Vol. 9, as they’ve announced release dates for the first six colorways just days after the sneaker made its on-court debut.
The Adidas Harden Vol. 9 will kick off this month with a China-exclusive release for a “Year of the Snake” edition before the sneaker launches next month globally in “Cyber Metallic,” the edition worn by Harden Monday night. New drops will then follow once a month through May, when a new crop is likely to follow. 

12/19/2024 |  Are the NBA’s ratings really a referendum on quality of play? (Sports Media Watch) The NBA ratings debate continues in earnest, and while the genesis is the same culture warring that has been underway since 2020, the discussion has rather quickly become a sounding board for those in and around the league who are dissatisfied with the quality of play. Indeed, this is no longer a conversation about anthem kneeling from half a decade ago, but one about the three-point shot and load management.

12/19/2024 |  First Look: Michael Jordan’s Original Air Jordan 8 ‘Aqua’ Makes a Comeback for the First Time in a Decade (Footwear News) One of 2025’s most anticipated Air Jordan Retro sneakers just got a first look.
Images of the ’25 iteration of the Air Jordan 8 Retro “Aqua” have surfaced via leaker @prm.cotd. While it doesn’t provide a full look at all angles of the sneaker, the photoset does offer a good idea of what to expect when the sneaker arrives.

12/19/2024 |  Packer Reimagines a Classic Adidas Basketball Shoe From the 1990s for Its Next Collaboration (Footwear News) Adidas Basketball has been hot as of late, and for Packer’s latest collaboration, the renowned retailer has reimagined a court-ready sneaker from the 1990s.
Before month’s end, the New Jersey-based retailer will deliver its Intimidation Low collaboration. Packer and Adidas worked together to create two colorways of the shoe: “Cyan Blue” and “Anthracite.” The uppers feature gradient overlays, as well as reworked tooling that Packer explained is similar to its first Adidas Intimidation collaboration in spring 2023.