JJ Redick is set to join the top ESPN NBA broadcast team after the All-Star break and is a loving ambassador for the game, but even he can’t stand the delay between when NBA games are supposed to start and when they actually start.
The tardiness was particularly pronounced on Sunday night when the NBA All-Star game was set to tip off at 8 p.m. ET (already late for a Sunday) but did not begin until about 8:45.
In a live reaction to the game on his YouTube channel, Redick was apoplectic.
“Why can’t we start anything on time in the NBA? I am going to sound like an old person here, but if it says 8 o’clock, I don’t want it to tip off at 8:42,” Redick complained. “Nothing starts on time in the NBA, and it’s driving me crazy. And I work for a broadcast partner. Can we just start things on time in the NBA? Because it’s out of control.”
Can we please start things on time in the NBA?
Watch @jj_redick’s live reaction to the #NBAAllStar Game and Weekend: https://t.co/KygzroEyxA pic.twitter.com/h7jQvkViSg
— TheOldMan&TheThree (@OldManAndThree) February 19, 2024
This is part of the culture of the NBA, different than almost any other pro league. Fans will miss the first pitch at an MLB game unless they are planted at the start time. The NFL kicks off at the time on everyone’s ticket. And yet pro basketball, for some reason, can’t be bothered with punctuality.
Fans routinely wait until the scheduled start time to make their way to their seats. Any media covering the game know the national anthem and lineup introductions don’t even begin until after the starting shot.
To start the All-Star game at nearly 9 ET on a Sunday night is crazy no matter the situation. But to tell your fans it will be at 8 and blow right past that makes even less sense.
Add “delayed starts” to the laundry list of problems just about everyone had with NBA All-Star weekend. If the likes of Redick, Stephen A. Smith and David Aldridge are turning on the league’s marquee showcase, what are fans supposed to enjoy?
It seems like this All-Star weekend might finally be the inflection point for a league negotiating a new broadcast deal and searching for solutions for evolving viewership and fandom.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.