I think the possibility of contraction would actually be fantastic for the NBA. I think the talent is too, spread out and a lot of franchises aren't serious about putting a competitive product on the court. Drop the league to 28 teams and distribute the remaining players with some sort of draft. Oklahoma City & Memphis are the two franchises I'd remove.
Agreed, and what's up with New Orleans trying to ship out Chandler, are they strictly a football city?
When you consider what happened there a few years ago with Katrina, it is hard to get enough people to go to 41+ home games. 8+ home games is easier for football.
I'd give the boot to the Grizzlies, Kings, Hornets (attendance reasons, lack of interest in NO), Wizards, Clippers, and Bobcats. Outside of the Hornets, all those teams suck and have no future ahead of them, the NBA should just drop the dead weight. I'd remove the Hornets because no one in New Orleans cares about them and they're apparently strapped for cash themselves. Bam, 24 teams. Some of those teams have some impressive talent too (and just aren't clicking), divying up those rosters would bump up the overall roster quality. East Boston New York Brooklyn (when the time comes) Philadelphia Toronto Detroit Cleveland Chicago Indiana Miami Orlando Atlanta West Dallas Houston San Antonio Phoenix Los Angeles Oakland (Golden State) Portland Utah Minnesota Milwaukee Denver Oklahoma City Different colors = different divisions I think that works.
I'd try to move teams around a bit more before contracting. It kind of gives a bad impression to give up on that many teams. The Hornets, Wizards, and Clippers are not doing that badly in attendance this season. The Kings have sucked for a few seasons but they've had a loyal fanbase for a decent amount of time before that. Contracting this many teams is an abrupt move, maybe move the Grizz/Bobcats around in the future.
