The NBA will place ads on uniforms in the 2017-18 season, and shame on you if you didn't see this coming up Madison Avenue.
Commissioner Adam Silver estimated teams could make up to $100 million a year with the new revenue. Considering they'll have this "found" money, does that mean franchises will pay their own bills and not shake down cities for new arenas or renovations to existing buildings? Yeah, sure.
This opens an interesting can of complications. How long until the players union steps in and demands a cut of the loot for its members serving as human billboards?
What happens if a player is at odds with the message he's bearing? Perhaps a staunch vegan wouldn't want to advertise the Golden Arches on his jersey. Maybe a player with a liberal political bent wouldn't want to passively endorse the conservative company that bought space on his uniform.
What happens when a great American corporation's logo is prominently displayed on a player whose picture is on the front page because he's just been accused of an awful crime?
If the NBA cracks on this, it's just a matter of time until other sports follow. The Steelers have had advertising on their practice jerseys, but that's not the same.
Silver says individual teams will be responsible for selling the advertising. Will that create another revenue gap? Certainly the Boston Celtics jerseys have more value to an advertiser than whatever colors the Milwaukee Bucks are sporting these days.
A long time ago, Ted Turner's holdings included both the Atlanta Braves and TV station WTBS, Channel 17. Turner persuaded pitcher Andy Messersmith, who wore No. 17, to have the word "Channel" placed on the back of the uniform rather than his name.
MLB stepped in and told Turner to knock it off because it was so cheesy.
Turns out he was just ahead of his time.
---
--NEW VOICE
Pitt announced that former receiver Bill Osborn will rejoin the radio broadcast team this season.
He replaces Pat Bostick, who has been promoted to a new position in the athletic department.
Osborn worked on the games before (1995-2003), and he makes no secret of his feelings. Occasionally Bill Hillgrove would be calling a play that wasn't going well for Pitt, and Osborn's plaintive "oh no, oh no" could be heard in the background.
---
--FUMBLED
Not to get all political, but Donald Trump should fire whatever staffers prepped him for his rally in Pittsburgh the other night.
All candidates pander with local references when they're on the stump, but Trump swung and missed badly with the stuff he was clumsily reading from a sheet of paper.
He apparently meant to mention the effort to bring back the Joe Paterno statue, but somehow left the word "statue" off what he was saying. It sounded like he was referencing the man, who died in 2012. Then he mentioned Penn State, a reference that fell flat.
Didn't anyone realize college loyalties are split along well-defined lines? No doubt there were Penn State fans in the audience. It's just as likely there were Pitt fans who delight in every Nittany Lions loss.
Anyone who knows anything knows you trot out Steelers references in Pittsburgh. He made a reference to "Big Ben" being a friend, but really didn't have a point beyond dropping the name.
If someone in his camp had been thinking, he could have said something like, "We're going to take care of business. Just the way Jack Lambert did every Sunday for the Steelers."
The place would have gone crazy.
---
--SEASON'S MEETINGS
So the Steelers have a home 4:15 kickoff against the Baltimore Ravens on Dec. 25.
Doesn't the NFL realize the evening hours on Christmas are reserved for family arguments, gluttony and serious egg nog-assisted napping?
Nobody respects traditions any more.
No comments:
Post a Comment