Reporting from Charlotte, N.C. — When NBA Commissioner Adam Silver thinks about parity in professional sports, he sees the NFL as the gold standard. But he can’t help but chuckle that the New England Patriots are such a constant presence in the Super Bowl.
For the last four seasons the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers have met in the Finals. That will change this year – the Cavaliers without LeBron James are one of the NBA’s worst teams. But the Warriors seem poised to head back to the Finals for a fifth straight year.
“If you look at the last, I think, 11 years, we’ve had seven different teams win championships,” Silver said Saturday. “But if you look back to the first 60 years of this league, I think three teams — the Lakers, Celtics, and the Bulls — won 60 percent of all championships. So, progress.”
The conversation about NBA parity has centered around big versus small markets. Particularly vexing for small-market teams has been the trend of superstar players leaving for bigger markets or other stars with whom they can partner. Anthony Davis, the most recent, put the Lakers, Clippers and New York Knicks on his original list of preferred destinations, along with one small-market team, Milwaukee.
Silver mentioned Milwaukee, Oklahoma City and Denver to illustrate that the NBA’s small-market teams are competitive. Oklahoma City, after all, kept Paul George despite his prior insistence that he planned to sign with the Lakers.
“In our cap system, as you well know, it’s a tax-based system, which creates penalties, in essence, for going over the salary cap, but you still end up with fairly large disparities in salaries from one market to another,” Silver said. “And often that disparity is not based on the size of the market. In certain cases, it’s based on revenue generation, which doesn’t always perfectly correlate. In some cases, it’s based on a willingness of a team to become unprofitable.”
Away from L.A.
Blake Griffin and D’Angelo Russell sat near each other during Saturday’s media day, All-Star teammates who have taken trades out of Los Angeles in stride.
Griffin, the longtime Clippers star, has had the best season of his career for the Detroit Pistons, averaging 26.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists. But most importantly, he’s played in 54 of 56 games and is as healthy as he’s been in the last five seasons.
It’s Griffin’s first All-Star appearance since 2015.
“It was about being healthy, to get that opportunity,” Griffin said. “Being able to work out all summer and being able to really be ready, coming into the season prepared, and be able to work on some things to expand my game was really important for me.”
Russell, once a second overall pick by the Lakers, is making his first All-Star appearance. In his second season in Brooklyn, he’s emerged as a top playmaking point guard, averaging 20.3 points and 6.6 assists for the surprising Nets.
“When opportunity presents itself in this league, I think you really have to take advantage of it,” Russell said. “I definitely got a second opportunity to play basketball and be a professional. And that’s what I’m doing.”
Basketball in Africa
The NBA and FIBA plan to launch a club league in Africa, called the Basketball Africa League, which will include 12 teams from across Africa.
They plan to hold a qualification tournament this year with teams from Angola, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia. No more than two teams from each country can qualify.
Silver said former president Barack Obama would be part of the initiative.
“I’ve always loved basketball because it’s about building a team that’s equal to more than the sum of its parts,” Obama said on Twitter. “Glad to see this expansion into Africa because for a rising continent, this can be about a lot more than what happens on the court.”
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Kevin Durant of Team LeBron and Stephen Curry of Team Giannis have different reactions to a play during the NBA All-Star game.
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Kevin Durant is awarded the NBA All-Star game MVP trophy after Team LeBron’s 178-164 win over Team Giannis.
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Team captain LeBron James drives down the lane between Blake Griffin, left, and Kemba Walker of Team Giannis during the first half of the NBA All-Star game.
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Magic Johnson speaks with fans on the court during the second half of the NBA All-Star game.
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Miami star Dwyane Wade reacts to a play during the NBA All-Star game.
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Team captain Giannis Antetokounmpo throws down a reverse dunk during the first half of the NBA All-Star game.
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LeBron James reacts to a play during the first quarter of the NBA All-Star game.
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Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns of Team LeBron throws down a dunk over opposing team captain Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Bucks.
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Heat guard Dwyane Wade of Team LeBron follows through on a three-point shot during the first half of the NBA All-Star game.
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Warriors forward Kevin Durant of Team LeBron grabs a rebound during the second half of the NBA All-Star game. Durant was selected most valuable player of the game.
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Rapper J. Cole performs at halftime of the NBA All-Star game.
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Warriors forward Kevin Durant of Team LeBron checks rival team captain Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Bucks during the first half of the NBA All-Star game.
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Warriors guard Stephen Curry of Team Gainnis is all smiles as he catches his breath during a break in play at the NBA All-Star game.
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Lakers forward LeBron James and All-Star game teammate James Harden of the Rockets relax during a break in the action at the NBA All-Star game on Sunday.
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Rapper Meek Mill performs before the NBA All-Star gameon Sunday.
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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Hamidou Diallo hangs on the rim after leaping Shaquille O’Neal and dunking elbow deep on the rim.
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Thunder guard Hamidou Diallo is congratulated after a dunk by teammate Russell Westbrook.
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Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins grabs the backboard while soaring for a dunk.
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New York Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr. elevates to the rim for a dunk.
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Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges attempts a dunk after passing the ball through his legs.
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Brooklyn’s Joe Harris holds the trophy after winning the three-point contest.
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Warriors guard Stephen Curry lines up a shot during the three-point contest.
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Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard reaches for the next basketball he will shoot during the three-point contest.
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Celtics forward Jayson Tatum celebrates after winning the skills competition. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)
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Lakers Kyle Kuzma congratulates Mavericks forward Luka Doncic after losing in the first round of the skills competition. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)
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TV personality Guy Fierii and rapper Fat Joe share a laugh during the skills competition. (Streeter Lecka / Getty Images)
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Nuggets center Nikola Jokic approaches the obstacle portion of the skills competition course. (Chuck Burton / Associated Press)
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Director Spike Lee and rapper 2 Chainz watch the skills competition. (Streeter Lecka / Getty Images)
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Hall of Famers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, center, speaks with Dominique Wilkins, left, as they attend NBA All-Star Saturday Night along with Bill Russell. (Chuck Burton / Associated Press)
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Hawks guard Trae Young acknowledges the crowd during the skills competition. (Gerry Broome / Associated Press)
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Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma holds aloft the MVP trophy for the Rising Stars game after he scored a game-high 35 points.
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Clippers guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tries to steal the ball from Knicks forward Kevin Knox during the Rising Stars game.
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Dallas Maverics owner Mark Cuban, center, sits with newly acquired forward Kristaps Porzingis during the Rising Stars game.
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Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma elevates for a dunk during the Rising Stars game.
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Raptors forward OG Anunoby takes flight for a between-the-legs dunk during the Rising Stars game.
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WNBA star A’ja Wilson gets past Bad Bunny (94) for a layup during the second half of the celebrity game.
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Home team coach Dawn Staley, left, speaks with assistant coach Lisa Boyer, middle, and A’ja Wilson (22) during the second half of the celebrity game.
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Actor JB Smoove fights for rebounding position with NBA Hall of Famer Ray Allen during the celebrity game.
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tania.ganguli@latimes.com
Follow Tania Ganguli on Twitter @taniaganguli
