Do they really matter?

Last week, while waiting for the Cleveland vs. Chicago game, I was talking to my friend Heidi. We were talking about the Jazz/Spurs game that was about to tip off. I was telling her how it could possibly be a big game for the Jazz due to their recent 4th quarter meltdowns. Her response was "It's early in the season, these games don't matter. I get into the NBA closer to the end of the season." I laughed to myself as this was not the first time I have heard someone say this. You hear it amongst family, friends, colleagues, and even the media. Not much hype is put on early season games in the NBA or MLB due to the extensive length of the seasons. A NBA team plays 82 games between late October and mid April, while a MLB teams season lasts a daunting 162 games spanning over 6 months and 3 seasons of the year. So the question came to my mind, are early season games important? My answer is Yes. And here is why.

How many times do you see the Wild Card race in baseball come down to the final day of the regular season, or like this year, a 163rd game? Ask the Detroit Tigers if they wish they would have won their season opening game this year against the Braves? They win that one, the 163rd game against Minnesota never happens and they are the ones partying in the playoffs. Ask the Utah Jazz if that November 9th loss to the New York Knicks last year meant something. They win that game, and they avoid playing the eventual World Champion Lakers in the first round. Now are you thinking differently?

Let's go even deeper. How often do you turn on a game (basketball, baseball, football, etc.) and you see the stands half full, people still filing in, and the front row "money" seats sitting empty? Almost every time right? The people who eventually come in 5 minutes after the game start think they haven't missed much. After all, isn't the end of the game the most exciting? The first few minutes of a 48 minute basketball game are insignificant in the big picture. But just think...if your team would have made one more shot in the early minutes of the game, overtime would have not been necessary. Add in those 3 missed free throws in the second quarter and that 1 point loss turns into a 2 point win.

So when you find yourself saying "Ah, this game doesn't matter because it's only November", jot that statement down somewhere and re-read it to yourself when your team misses out of the playoffs by 1 measly game. Or when you lose home court (or field) advantage throughout the playoffs because that winnable game in December ended in a loss. We expect the players on our team to come out every night and play their best, but yet we are not willing to give them our best effort as fans. If you are a fan, every quarter should matter, every half should matter, every game should matter. So before you go get mad at Boozer, Okur, D-Will, or whoever your favorite player (team) is for not showing up one night, ask yourself if you didn't show up one night also.