First NBA media day signals that basketball has finally returned

Yesterday, September 24, was the first official NBA media day. The Boston Celtics held interviews for players and coaches who looked forward to the upcoming season. It's the first official act signifying that NBA basketball is rapidly approaching, and we'll start seeing our players more often as training camp is right around the corner.

The NBA is the most star-centric sport in America, and there are several reasons for that. One of them is that many players have intriguing personalities. There can be unnecessary drama at any moment, like the Brittney Spears vs. Victor Wembanyama controversy last season, or it can be as simple as a confident but unintentionally disrespectful comment made by a star player.

The NBA provides constant entertainment

It is hilarious to hear a star player reveal what Jaylen Brown did during Celtics Media Day. That's not something he had to share out loud, and no matter how genuine he was when he said that he meant no disrespect, it's extremely disrespectful to say that you run your offense through Payton Pritchard or Sam Hauser when you play teams like the Detroit Pistons to boost the confidence of those guys.

But the entertainment value isn't the only thing you should take from such an outlandish statement. The revelation is to examine how the championship teams treat the San Antonio Spurs when matched up. You don't want to be the team on which contenders warm up their role players.

It will tell fans a lot about what the top-tier teams think of the squad, depending on their game plan and whether they are running their offense through their best guys as they should. If San Antonio finds themselves in that situation, the opponent has to pay for that strategy with a loss.

When teams see Wembanyama and the crew on the schedule, they need to understand that they will have a fight on their hands, no matter how good they are. That's part of Spurs culture. There was a time when even if the Big 3 missed a game, San Antonio still had a shot to win, no matter the opponent. That requires a solid team all around—guys who know their roles and play with pride.

A great system will do, and great coaching does the rest. It would be nice to get back to a level where the Spurs can experiment during the season without worrying about losing games. The guys have a ways to go, but with Wemby leading the way, fans have hope that a return to organizational dominance will follow.